JLIBRARY OF CONGRESS. # 



[FORCE COLLECTION.] ^ 

UNITED STATES OT^AMERICA, | 

1)1 



A 



THE 

BOOK 



OP THE 



ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH 

IN A SERIES OF LETTERS 



ADDRESIED TO 



ROBERT SOUTHEY, ESQ. LL.D, 



ON HIS 



a 



BOOK OF THE CHURCH.'' 



BY CHARLES BUTLER, ESQ. 



Ha9c a quovis alio quam a me, scribi velim ; a me, potius quam a nemine. 



^^^v of Cor:^^^ 



PUBLISHED BY JAMES MYRES^^^-l^^^^^ 

NEAR THE CATHEDRAL, 
1834 






S. E. CORNER OF CALVERT AND MARKET-STREETS. 



TO 
CHARLES BLUNDELL, ESQ. 



OF INCE-BLUNDELL, 



IN THE COUNTY OF liANCASTER. 



DEAR SIR, 

I REQUEST your acceptance of my Reply to Dr. 
Southey's "Book of the Church;" — a work with which 
you probably are not unacquainted. 

It abounds with the strongest criminations of the roman-ca- 
tholic religion, and of the conduct of our roman-catholic ances- 
tors. I do not recollect that a publication more offensive, ei- 
ther to the understandings or the feelings of the roman-catho- 
lics, has appeared within our memory. ^ 

I wilhngly admit, that, to produce against our creed or con- 
duct, all that research or fair argument can supply, is legitimate 
controversy; but surely, to conceal, or to represent our merits 
very briefly and imperfectly, and to display our defects at length, 
and with the highest colouring; to impute to our general body 
what, in justice, is only chargeable on individuals; or to esti- 
mate the writings or actions of our ancestors in the dark ages, 
by the notions and manners of the present age, — is a crying 
injustice. 

Does not doctor Southey too often fall into all these errors ? 
Is he sufficiently aware, — that the roman-«atholics have sus- 



( iv ) 

tained a defamation of three hundred years ? — ^That, in conse- 
quence of it, an immense mass of prejudice was raised against 
them ? That it yet retains its place in many uninstructed minds j 
and that it is not wholly eradicated from all the liberal and the 
informed ? None of these believe that London was set on fire by 
the roman-catholics, or in the truth of Oates's revelations : But 
the prejudice originally created by these fictions, has not entire- 
ly lost its effect: it still influences some respectable persons, in 
their opinions of the roman-catholic religion, much more than 
they are aware of. 

This prejudice, '' the Book of the Church" is admirably cal- 
culated both to keep alive and to increase — To counteract its 
tendency is the object of the present pages. If doctor Milner 
had framed " his Strictures'^'^ upon the " Book of the Church" 
on a more extensive plan, it would have made this or any other 
answer to it unnecessary. 

Such as my pages are, — I inscribe them to you: I hope 
they do not contain a word, at which the very learned, elegant 
and eloquent author of the work, to which they are addressed, 
can take just offence. My publications are numerous, — ^per- 
haps too numerous: — ^but I trust they do not contain one harsh 
word; one, by which I have ever offended, either against cha- 
rity, or even against civility. 

No person admires more than I do, the golden sentence of 
St. Francis of Sales, — that " a good christian is never outdone 
" in good manners." 

With the greatest respect, 
I have the honour to be. 

Your most obedient Servant, 

CHARLES BUTLEP 

Lincoln's-Inn, 

4 November, 1824. 



LETTERS 



TO 



nR. SOITTHEY, 



ON HIS 



BOOK OF THE CHURCH. 



INTRODUCTION. 



I. The proper Style of Controversy : — II. i||Ke Creed of 
Pope Pirn IV, : — III. Observations on such of the Arti- 
cles in it as are expressed in general terms : — IV. Appli- 
cation of these observations to doctor Southey'^s Charge 
against the Roman-catholic Churchy that her Doctrines are 
corrupt. 

Sir, 

I HAVE perused with ^eat attention, your "Book of 
THE Church," and find it to be, in many places, injurious to 
the roman-catholic church, and particularly so to the roman-ca - 
tholics of England: under this impression, I address you the 
following Letters. 



INTRODUCTION. 



Proper Style of Controversy. 

In the year 1634, Pope Urban VIII. sent Father Jones, a 
Benedictine monk, called in religion Father Leander^ a Sane- 
to Martino^ into England, to procure for the holy see accurate 
information, respecting the state of the established church; the 
condition of the English catholics ; and the disposition of the 
government in their regard. On each of these heads. Father 
Leander made his report to his holiness. On the first, he thus 
expresses himself:* " The protestant church retains an exter- 
" nal appearance of the ecclesiastical hierarchy, which was in 
'^ force during- the time of the catholic religion; it has its arch- 
" bishops, bishops, deans, archdeacons, chapters of canons in 
" the oathedrals of the antient sees, and most ample revenues. 
"• It preserves its antient edifices,. the names of its antient par- 
" ishes, priests and deacons ; a form of conferring orders, which 
" agrees, in most respects, with the forms prescribed by the ro- 
'' man pontifical; it preserves also the clerical habits and gowns, 
" the pastoral crook and copes, the antient temples, parishes, 
" churches and colleges of magnificent structure, and attend- 
'' ance on these is enjoined." — " In the greater number of the 
" articles of faith, the English protestants of the established 
" church are truly orthodox; as on the sublime mysteries of 
'• the Trinity, and the Incarnation ; on the economy of the re- 
^' demption of man, and satisfaction ; tlirough the whole almost 
" of the controversies respecting predestination, grace, and free 
" will; the necessity and merit of good works, and the other 

* Clarendon's State Papers, vol. 1, page 197, 



INTRODUCTION. 7 

" articles expressed in the creed of the Apostles, in the Nicene 
" and the Athanasian creeds, (as these stand in the roman-ca- 
" tholic liturgy), and in the four first general councils." 

When there is so near an approximation -in religious creeds, 
there certainly should be an equal approximation in christian 
and moral charity ; an equal wish to sooth, to conciliate, to find 
the real points of difference very few, and to render them still 
fewer ; and an equal unwillingness on each side to say, or to 
write, any thing unpleasing to the feelings of the other. In this 
amicable spirit, the controversy between Limborch and Orobio, 
and the conference between Bossuet and Claude were conduct- 
ed ; and in this spirit, it is hoped, the following pages will be 
found to be written. They are intended to be a reply to some 
passages in your "Book op the Church," which contain 
inaccurate accounts, either of the faith, or the conduct of roman- 
catholics. These appear to me to be so numerous, as to render 
it necessary, in order completely to exhibit and refute them, to 
follow you chapter by chapter. This task is not pleasant ; but 
I feel it due from me to my roman-catholic brethren. It will 
give me unspeakable pleasure to find I have executed it to their 
satisfaction; and not offended the intelligent, or the candid, 
among their adversaries. What I consider to be truth, I must 
tell ; but I hope to tell it in a manner, which will show sincere 
respect for those, whose different notions it opposes. Harsh 
or contumelious words never yet served the cause of truth or 
reason: St. Francis of Sales has justly observed, that "a good 
christian is never outdone in good manners." 

In the present introductory address, I shall insert the creed of 
Pope Pius IV., as an authentic exposition of the faith of the ro- 
man catholic church. It contains a particular mention of most 
articles of her faith, and a general statement of the others : on the 
last I shall offer some observations. . 



8 INTRODUCTION. 

I mean to proceed on the following plan : — ^The number of 
letters will be the same as the number of chapters in " the 
^ Book of the Church ;" and each letter will notice what I con- 
sider to be proper subjects for animadversion in the chapter, 
which corresponds with it in number. As nothing of this na- 
ture occurs in the first chapter of " the Book of the Church," I 
shall insert in my first letter some statements and remarks re- 
specting the general diffusion of the roman-catholic religion 
over the world. 



II. 

The Creed of Pius IV. 

This celebrated symbol of catholic faith was published by 
his holiness in 1564, in the form of a bull, addressed to all the 
faithful in Christ. It was immediately received throughout the 
universal church ; and, since that time, has ever been consider- 
ed, in every part of the world, as an accurate and explicit sum- 
mary of the roman-catholic faith. Non-catholics, on their ad- 
mission into the catholic church, publicly repeat and testify 
their assent to it, without restriction or qualification. It is ex- 
pressed in the following terms : 

" I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of hea- 
'' ven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible ; and ip 
" one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God ; Light 
" of Light; true God of true God; begotten, not made; con- 
" substantial to the Father, by whom all things were made ; 
" who, for us men and for our salvation, came down from hea- 
" ven, and was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin 
'' Mary, and was made man ; was crucified also for us under 
" Pontius Pilate, suffered and was buried, and rose again on 



INTRODUCTION. 9 

" the third day, according to the scriptures, and ascended into 
" heaven ; sits at the right hand of the Father, and will come 
" again with glory to judge the living and the dead, of whose 
" kingdom there will be no end : and in the Holy Ghost, the 
" Lord and Life Giver, who proceeds from the Father and the 
" Son ; who, together with the Father and Son, is adored and 
" glorified ; who spoke by the prophets : and one holy catho- 
" lie and apostolic church. I confess one baptism for the re- 
" mission of sins ; and I expect the resurrection of the body, 
" and the life of the world to come. Amen. 

" I most firmly admit and embrace apostolical and ecclesi- 
" astical traditions, and all other constitutions and observances 
" of the same church. 

" I also admit the sacred scriptures according to the sense 
" which the holy mother church has held, and does hold, to 
" whom it belongs to judge of the true sense and interpretation 
" of the holy scriptures *, nor will I ever take or interpret them 
'^ otherwise, than according to the unanimous consent of the 
" fathers. 

" I profess also, that there are truly and properly seven sacra- 
" ments of the new law, instituted by Jesus Christ our Lord, 
" and for the salvation of mankind, though all are not necessary 
" for every one ; viz. baptism, confirmation, eucharist, penance, 
" extreme unction, order, and matrimony, and that they confer 
" grace ; and of these, baptism, confirmation and order, cannot 
" be reiterated without sacrilege. 

" I also receive and admit the ceremonies of the catholic 
" church, received and approved in the solemn administration 
" of all the above-said sacraments. 

" I receive and embrace all and every one of the things, 
" which have been defined and declared in the holy council of 
^' Trent, concerning original sin and justification. 



10 INTRODUCTION. 

" I profess likewise, that in the mass is offered to God a true^ 
" proper, and propitiatory sacrifice for the living and the dead ; 
" and that in the most holy sacrifice of the eucharist there is tru- 
" ly, really, and substantially the body and blood, together with 
" the soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ •, and that there 
" is made a conversion of the whole substance of the bread into 
" the body, and of the whole substance of the wine into the 
" blood, which conversion the catholic church calls transubstan- 
" tiation. 

" I confess also, that under either kind alone, whole and en- 
" tire, Christ and a true sacrament is received. 

" I constantly hold that there is a purgatory, and that the souls 
" detained therein are helped by the suffrages of the faithful. 

" Likewise, that the saints reigning together with Christ, are 
" to be honoured and invocated, that they offer prayers to God 
" for us, and that their relics are to be venerated. 

" I most firmly assert, that the images of Christ, and of the 
" Mother of God ever virgin, and also of the other saints, are to 
" be had and retained ; and that due honour and veneration are 
" to be given them. 

" I also affirm, that the power of indulgences was left by Christ 
" in the church, and that the use of them is most wholesome to 
" christian people. 

" I acknowledge the holy catholic and apostolical roman 
" church, the mother and mistress of all churches ; and I pro- 
" mise and swear true obedience to the roman bishop, the suc- 
" cessor of St. Peter, the prince of the apostles, and vicar of Jesus 
" Christ. 

" I also profess and undoubtedly receive all other things de- 
" livered, defined, and declared by the sacred canons, and gene- 
'^ ral councils, and particularly by the holy council of Trent ; 
" and likewise I also condemn, reject and anathematize all 



INTRODUCTION. 11 

" things contrary thereto, and all heresies whatsoever condemn- 

" ed and anathematized by the church. 

" This true catholic faith, out of which none can be saved, 

" which I now freely profess, and truly hold, I, JV. promise, vow 
I " and swear most constantly to hold and profess, the same whole. 
\ " and entire, with God's assistance, to the end of my life. 

'" Amen." 



III. 

Ohservations on such of the Articles of Faith^ contained in the 
Creed of Pope Pius IV. as are expressed in general terms. 

Detailed accounts of these would not suit the plan of these 
letters. On all of them I beg leave to suggest, that in every re- 
ligious controversy between protestants and roman-catholics, 
the following rule should be rigidly observed : — " That no 

DOCTRINE SHOULD BE ASCRIBED TO THE ROMAN-CATHOLICS 
AS A BODY, EXCEPT SUCH AS IS AN ARTICLE OF THEIR FAITH." 

Among the many misconceptions of their tenets, of which 
the roman-catholics have to complain, they feel none more than 
those, which proceed from a want of the observance of this 
rule. It is most true, that the roman-catholics believe the doc- 
trines of their church to be unchangeable ; and that it is a tenet 
of their creed, that what their faith ever has been, such it was 
from the beginning,^ such it now is, and such it ever will be. 
But this proposition they coniine to the articles of their faith ; 
and they consider no doctrine to be of faith, unless it have been 
delivered by divine revelation, and propounded by the roman- 
catholic church, as a revealed article of faith. This the roman- 
catholics wish their adversaries never to forget. 



m INTRODUCTION. 

When any of their adversaries find, in any catholic writer, a 
position, which they think reprehensible, they should inquire, 
whether it be an article of catholic faith, or an opinion of the 
writer. In the latter case, they should reflect, that the general 
body of the catholics is not responsible for it, and should there- 
fore abstain from charging it upon the body. 

If they take the higher ground, they should first endeavour 
to ascertain, that it is an article of the catholic faith. But here, 
again, they should carefully examine, whether it be the princi- 
ple itself, which they mean to impute to the catholics, or a con- 
sequence which they themselves deduce from it. These are 
widely different, and should never be confounded. If it be the 
principle, they should then inquire, whether it has been pro- 
pounded as an article of faith by the church. A wise method 
of ascertaining this would be, to read the " Catechism of the 
" Council of Trent?'' A proper perusal, however, of that do- 
cument requires attentive study. If they be unable to give it 
such a perusal, let them read Bossuet's " Exposition of Faith^'^ 
and consult Mr. Gother's " Papist Misrepresented and Repre^ 
'' sentedj'^ or at least Doctor Challoner's abridgment of it ; let 
them also read Doctor Challoner's " Three Short Summaries 
" of Catholic Faith and Doctrine^'' contained in three sections 
prefixed to his '' Garden of the Soul^''' the most popular 
Prayer Book of the English catholics. Having read these, let 
them ascertain, whether the doctrine, with which they charge 
the catholics, be, in terms or substance, stated in any of these 
works, to be an article of their faith. If they conceive that it 
is so stated, in any of them, let them insert in their publication 
the passage in which they profess to discover the erroneous 
tenet ; mentioning explicitly the work, the edition of it, and the 
page in which it is contained. Should the passage be found, in 
terms or substance, in any of the works which have been men- 



INTRODUCTION. 13 

tioned, then it will be incumbent on the catholics, either to 
show that the writer, in whose work the passage is found, was 
mistaken, (which, from the acknowledged character of all the 
works, will, in all probability, never happen,) or to admit that 
it is an article of their faith : the roman-catholics will then be 
justly chargeable with it, and with the consequences justly de- 
ducible from it. Whatever other opinions can be adduced, 
though they be the opinions of their most respectable writers, 
though they be the opinions of the fathers of their church, still 
they are but matters of opinion, and a catholic may disbelieve 
them, without ceasing to be a catholic. Would it not be both a 
fair and short way of ending the controversy between the pro- 
testants and catholics, that every person, who charges the gene- 
ral body of catholics with any religious tenet, should be obliged 
to cite, from the catechism of the council of Trent, or from one 
or other of the works which have been mentioned, the passage 
in which such tenet is contained and propounded as an article 
of faith ? 



IV. 

.Application of the preceding Suggestion to the charge of cor^ 
rupi Doctrine and unjustifiaUe Practices^ repeatedly brought 
against the Roman-catholic Body in " the Book of the 

. " Church?' 

I REQUEST you to cousidcr with -attention the rule which I 
have suggested : then to ascertain whether any doctrine, which 
you have imputed to the roman-catholics, or the sanction of 
any practice which you have charged upon them, is to be found 
in the creed of Pius IV., the council of Trent, in its catechism, 
2 



14 INTRODUCTION. 

or in any of the works which I have mentioned, or in any other 
work of similar authority. If you find it in the council, in its ca- 
techism, or in any of the works which I have mentioned, the 
roman-catholics must abide the consequences. If yoii do not 
find it ; you may abuse the doctrine and those who maintain it, 
in any terms you think proper ; but you are not entitled to 
charge it upon the roman-catholics : it is merely the imagina- 
tion of an individual ; it is no part of the catholic creed. 

If any of the ridiculous doctrines which are maintained by 
any of the sectaries mentioned in a publication not unknown to 
you, — The Letters of Don Manuel Alvarez Espriella^^ — all 
of whom appeal to the scriptures, and protest against popery, 
and are therefore, according to the protestant catechism^ pub- 
lished by the learned bishop of St. David's, to be deemed pro- 
testants — should be charged by a roman-catholic on a protestant 
of the church of England, as a tenet of his religious creed, might 
not the protestant justly require the roman-catholic to point 
out the doctrine or the practice thus charged upon him, either 
in the Bible, or at least in the Thirty-nine Articles, or the Litur- 
gy ? and, if it should not be found in any of these, would not 
the protestant be justly acquitted of all responsibility for it t By 
parity of reason, — in all the cases, in which you charge the ro- 

*Espriel]a's list of them is curious: " Arminians, Socinians, Baxte- 
" rians, Presbyterians, New-Americans, Sabellians, Lutherans, Unita- 
" rians, Millenarians, Necessarians, Sublapsarians, Supralapsarians, 
" Muggletonians, Antimonians, Hutchinsonians, Sandemoniins, Bap- 
" tists, Anabaptists, Poedobaptists, Methodists, Universalists, Calvinists, 
" Materiahsts, Destructionists, Brownists, Independants, Protestants, 
" Hugonots, Non-jurors, Seceders, Hernhutters, Dunkers, Jumpers, 
" Shakers, and Quakers, &c &,c. &c.'' A precious nomenclature! An 
.interesting account of many of these sectaries is given in the " Histoire 
" des Sectes Religieuses, par M. Gregoire, 2 vols. 8vo. 1810." From 
this work Espriella might have considerably augmented his own list. 



INTRODUCTION. 15 

man-catholics with corrupt doctrine, is not the roman-catholic 
entitled to require that you should point it out in the council, 
or in some or other of the works I have referred to ? and if you 
should not find it, will not the roman-catholics be similarly en- 
tided to an acquittal from all responsibility for it ? 

It is the same with respect to the practices, for which, in a 
multitude of instances, you have criminated the roman-catho- 
lics, sometimes individually, but oftener collectively : May you 
not be justly required to show, that the council, or some of the 
works which have been referred to, contains the doctrine which 
prescribes, or sanctions, or excuses, the practice thus charged 
on the roman-catholics ? and, if no such doctrine should be 
found in them, will you not be bound to retract the charge ? 

Here then I confidently take my stand. — I acknowledge that 
individual catholics have maintained unjustifiable doctrines, and 
been guilty of unjustifiable practices ; but I insist on the pro- 
duction of the tenet, justly ascribable to the catholic creed, to 
which any such doctrine or practice can fairly be attributed. I 
aver, that no such tenet can be produced : if it cannot, I claim 
for my church an acquittal from your charges, 
y Does not this alone answer every charge in " the Book of 
" the Church ?" I admire the elegance, the energy of its style, 
and the many other beauties of composition with which it 
abounds ; but I find nowhere in it a citation from any work, or 
any document, like those I have mentioned^ which prescribes, 
or sanctions, or excuses any corrupt doctrine, or any unjustifia- 
ble practice. Till such a passage is found, much may be said 
about our creed, and about our practices. We ourselves should 
join in much of what may be so said ; but every charge, not 
substantiated in the manner I have mentioned, 

" Is but leather and prunella I" 

Pope. 



LETTER I. 

a geographical view of the romax-catholic church. 

Sir, 

The smallness of the number of the roman-catholics in 
England, compared to that of its general population, is always 
before the eyes of protestants ; and too often prevents them 
from sufficiently attending to the general diffusion of the ro- 
man-catholic religion over the habitable globe ; or to the im- 
mense numerical superiority of its members over those of any 
protestant church, and even over those of all protestant churches 
in the aggregate. 

" The catholic," says Dr. Milner, " is still the religion of 
" the states of Italy, of most of the Swiss cantons, of Pied- 
" mont, of France, of Spain, of Portugal, and of the islands of 
" the Mediterranean ; in three parts in four of the Irish, of far 
'' the greater part of the Netherlands, Poland, Bohemia, Ger- 
" many, Hungary, and the neighbouring provinces ; and in 
" those kingdoms and states in which it is not the established 
" religion, its followers are very numerous, as in Holland, Rus- 
" sia, Turkey, the Lutheran and Calvinistic states of Gennany 
" and England. Even in Sweden and Denmark, several cath- 
" olic congregations, with their respective pastors are to be 
" found. The whole vast continent of South America, inha- 
2* 



18 EXTENSION OF THE [Letter 

^' bited by many millions of converted Indians, as well as by 
'^ many Spaniards and Portiaguese, may be said to be catholic. 
'' The same may be said of the empire of Mexico, and the sur- 
" rounding kingdoms in North America, including California, 
" Cuba, Hispaniola, &c. Canada and Louisiana are chiefly 
'^ catholic ; and throughout the United Provinces, the catholic 
" religion, with its several establishments, is completely pro- 
" tected and unboundedly propagated. To say nothing of the 
" islands of Africa inhabited by catholics, such as Malta, Ma- 
" deira. Cape Yerd, the Canaries, the Azores, Mauritius, Goree, 
" &c. there are numerous churches of catholics established and 
" organized under their pastors in Egypt, Ethiopia, Algiers, Tu- 
" nis, and the other Barbary states on the northern coast ; par- 
" ticularly at Angola and Congo. Even on the eastern coast, 
" particularly in the kingdom of Zanguebar and Monomotapa, 
" are nmnerous catholic churches. There are also numerous 
'' catholic priests, and many bishops, with numerous flocks, 
" throughout the greater part of Asia. All the Maronites about 
"• Mount Libanus, with their bishops, priests and monks, ^re 
" catholics ; and so are many Armenians, Persians and other 
'* christians of the surrounding kingdoms and provinces. In 
" whatever island or. states the Portuguese or Spanish power 
'' does prevail, or has prevailed, most of the inhabitants, and in 
" some, all of them, have been converted. The whole popula- 
" tion of the Phillippine Islands, consisting of two millions of 
" souls, is all catholic. The diocese of Goa contains 400,000 
" catholics. In a late parliamentary record, it is stated that in 
'' Travancor and Cochin is a catholic archbishopric, with two 
'^ bishoprics : one of which contains 35,000 communicants. 
'^ There are numerous catholic flocks, with their priests, and 
" even bishops, in all the kingdoms and states beyond the Gaa- 



I.] ROMAN-CATHOLIC CHURCH. 19 

" ges, particularly in Siam, Cochin-china, Tonquin, and the dif- 
" ferent provinces of the Chinese empire." 

Such is the extent of the roman-catholic religion. You de- 
scribe it, in the last line of your tenth chapter, as " a prodigious 
" structure of imposture and wickedness." Is it decorous to 
apply this opprobrious language to a religion professed in such 
extensive territories ? Several of which are in the hio^hest state 
of intellectual advancement, and abound, as you must acknow- 
ledge, with persons, from the very highest to the very lowest 
condition of life, of the greatest honour, endowments and 
worth ? — If the religion of this large proportion of the christian 
world really be, " the prodigious structure of imposture and 
" wickedness" you describe it, — have not the gates of hell, con- 
trary to the most solemn promise of the Son of God, prevailed 
against his church ? I must also request you to inform me, 
when " this prodigious structure of imposture and wickedness" 
was raised. You must be sensible the aer«s assigned for it by 
many of your eminent writers are very different and very nu- 
merous. 

But, putting this universal diffusion of the roman-catholic re- 
ligion out of consideration, and confining these observations to 
the roman-catholic subjects of his Britannic majesty, permit me 
to observe to you, that the number of these, exceeds the num- 
ber of any other denomination of his majesty's christian sub- 
jects throughout his empire. Surely this entitles them to be 
treated with the language of decent controversy. Even con- 
fining the case to the English catholics, — the proportionate 
number of whom I acknowledge to be small, — even they are 
entitled to this decency of treatment. We are not the vilia 
corpora to whom the language, which modern manners has 
banished from conversation, should be applied. "When I 
" speak," said the late Mr. Wyndham, on presenting the peti- 



20 EXTENSION OF THE, &c. [Letter I. 

tion of the English roman-catholics in 1810, " of the obscurity 
" of the English roman-catholics, I do not mean that they are 
^' destitute of hereditary virtues and hereditary dignities, that 
" they are not a part of that class which ought to be denomi- 
'' nated Ultimi Romanorumy — (You see. Sir, that this great 
man thought, that a right to this appellation was honourable.) 
" 1 cannot," he continued, " contemplate a more noble and af- 
" fecting spectacle, than an antient roman-catholic gentleman, 
" in the midst of his people, exercising the virtues of benefi- 
" cence, humanity and hospitality. If they are obscure, it is 
" because they are proscribed as aliens in the state ; because 
" they are shut out from this assembly, where many of those, 
" who are far less worthy, are allowed to sit. Have they ever 
" exercised those vile arts, which are exercised so successfully 
'^ by many, to creep into power and place ? Have they ever at- 
" tempted to obtain their rights, either by clamour or by servili- 
'^ ty ^ On the contrary, their conduct has proved that no other 
" body is more justly entided to respect and admiration." This 
was the language of one of the most able statesmen, most ac- 
complished scholars, most perfect gentlemen, and best judges 
of men and things in our times. 



INTRODUCTION OF, &c. 21 



LETTER II. 



first introduction of christianity. 

Sir, 
We know that Julius Csesar invaded Great Britain fifty-four 
years before the birth of Christ ; that it was invaded by the 
Saxons, four hundred and forty-nine years after the christian 
sera. It is probable, that Christianity was disseminated over 
parts of England during the apostolic age. This was univer- 
sally believed by our ancestors ; some have called it the first of 
the three conversions of England to Christianity. We are in- 
formed by the venerable Bede, and by several of our early his- 
torians, that, about the one hundred and seventeenth year of 
the christian aera, pope Eleutherius, on the application of Lu- 
cius, a British prince, the third in descent from Caractacus, and 
particularly favoured by the Romans, commissioned two cler- 
gymen, Fugatius and Damianus, to preach the gospel to the 
Britons. This has been called the second of the three conver- 
sions of Britain to Christianity. Doctor Heylin* asserts, that 
Lucius procured archiepiscopal sees to be erected at York, 
Caerleon upon Usk, and London, for the northern, southern, 
and western parts of England ; and suffragan bishops to be as- 
signed to each. The concurrent testimonies of TertuUiam 

* Help to History, p. 69. 



22 INTRODUCTION OF, &c. [Letter 11. 

Eusebius, and Thesodoret, show, that Christianity made a con- 
siderable progi-ess in the island, particularly in its southern 
parts. It was favoured by the extirpation of the religion of the 
Druids, whom the Roman arms had expelled into Wales. 
The general persecution of Christianity, by the emperor Dio- 
clesian, severely visited the Christians of Britain. St. Alban, 
and Julius and Aaron of Caerleon, suffered death for the faith 
of Christ : the former is st5ded the proto-martyr of Britain ; his 
memory was always singularly venerated by the catholics of 
England. 

That much in the history of the two first conversions of 
England is questionable, cannot be doubted. But does not 
equal doubt, at least, attend the early history, whether sacred or 
profane, of every nation? Those who have read the learned 
and entertaining discussions of M. Freret, and M. Beaufort, on 
the History of the Five First Centuries of Rome, must admit, 
that the popular accounts of the two first conversions of Eng- 
land are entitled to as much credit as the accounts given by the 
historians of Rome of the early period of her history ; and that 
the documents, on which the history of the first conversions of 
England depend, approach much nearer than those of the an- 
tient Romans to historical certitude. It seems difficult to deny 
that they favour the catholic doctrine of the pope's supremacy, 
and his right of general superintendance over the spiritual con- 
cerns of the church of Christ.* 

* This letter was written, after having considered all the authorities 
collected upon the subject, in the first tome of the " Annales Ecclesias 
" Anglicanae, auctore R. Patre Michaele Alfordo, alias Griffith, Anglo, 
" Societatis Jesu Theolego ;" in four large folio volumes. His extracts 
from the original authors are so copious as to leave the reader, who 
wishes for original information, hardly any thing to desire. The writer 
also had perused with great attention the six first chapters of the first 
part of father Person's " Treatise of the Three Conversions of the Church 
^* of JJngland," — a learned work, now become e^^ceedingly scarce. 



ANGLO-SAXONS. 28 



LETTER in. 



THE ANGLO-SAXONS. 



Sir, 

In this letter I shall particularly notice, — I. The conversion 
of the Anglo- Sax^s to Christianity : — II. The conformity of 
the religion^ the religious ceremonial.^ and the morality preach- 
ed to them; to the religion^ the religious ceremonial^ and the mo- 
rality now taught hy the roman-catholic church : — III. Then 
consider your crimination of the Anglo-Saxon clergy^ for their 
practices on the ignorance and credulity of the people : — IV. 
The doctrine taught in their monasteries ; the misrepresentation 
of it hy two eminent protestant toriters : — V. And the mira- 
cles performed in the roman-catholic church. 

The Saxons of Ptolemy lay between the Oder and the Elbe ; 
they afterwards extended themselves from the Elbe over the 
Ems, and reached Francia and Thuringia on the south. Har- 
derick was the first of their kings whose name is known to 
us, J he reigned ninety years before Christ. To him Hengist, 
who with his brother Horsia invaded England in 434, was 
fourteenth in succession. These princes, and their successors, 
made a complete conquest of England ] they extirpated the pa- 
gan religion of Rome, established their own superstition 
throughout the island, and drove the Britons, who professed 
Christianity, into Wales, Ireland and Scotland. 



24 CONVERSION OF [Letter 



III. 1. 

History of the Conversion of the .Rnglo- Saxons to Chris- 

tianity. 

Sacred history contains nothing more edifying than the ac- 
count of the conversion of the Anglo-Saxons. " It has often 
'^ been remarked as a peculiar merit of the christian religion, 
" that it neither arose from ambition, nor was propagated by 
" the sword. It appealed unofiendingly to the reason, the sen- 
" sibility, the virtue, and the interest of mankind ; and it es- 
" tablished itself in every province of the Roman empire. 
" When the torrent of barbarians overspread Europe, to the 
" destruction of all arts and knowledge, Christianity fell in the 
" general wreck. Soon however in some districts she raised 
" her mild and interesting form, and the savages yielded to 
" her benign influence. 

" Among the Anglo-Saxons, her conquest over the fierce 
" and wild paganism, to which our ancestors adhered, was 
" not begun, till France, and even Ireland, had submitted to 
'^ her laws ; but it was accomplished in a manner worthy of 
" her benevolence and purity. 

" General piety seems to have led the first missionaries to 
" our shores ; and the excellence of the system they diffiised, 
" made their labours successful." 

With these expressions, our learned friend, Mr. Sharon Tur- 
ner, introduces his account of the propagation of Christianity 
among the Anglo-Saxons.^ I beg leave to transcribe doctor 
Fletcher's succinct history of this event ;"}' nothing of my own 

* Turner's " History of the Anglo-Saxons,'* 2d edition, book xiii. 
c. 1. 

t Doctor Fletcher's " Sermons on various Religious and Moral Sub- 
" jects, vol. 2. p. 14. 



III.] THE ANGLO-SAXONS. 25 

could be more true, or would be so elegant. I transcribe it 
from one of the sermons, addressed by him to his congrega- 
tion, at Weston-Underwood, in Buckinghamshire. 

" About twelve hundred years ago, and above nine hundred 
" years before the introduction of protestantism, Augustine, 
" with his companions, brought the light of faith into this 
'^ island. They derived their commission from the great, and 
" only acknowledged, source of spiritual authority ; and in 
" their faith and communion, they were united with every or- 
" thodox community of the christian universe. Their faith, 
'' my brethren, was the same which you and I adore at pre- 
'' sent. In their private and public characters, they were men 
'' eminent for their virtues, practising, not only the precepts, 
" but the counsels of the gospel ; despising all earthly satisfac- 
'' tions, and attentive only to their own salvation, and to the 
" salvation of their neighbours. Their employments, when 
" not engaged in the active occupations of their ministry, were 
" prayer, watching, penance, and mortification. As for their 
" conduct in the sacred ministry, it was such as became apos- 
'' ties, — men deputed, by the command of Heaven, to convey 
" the blessings of the gospel to pagan nations. They preach- 
" ed, and acted, as did once the first envoys of Jesus Christ. 
" Fired with the love of God, and animated with charity to 
'' their fellow-men, they joined the ardour of zeal to the ten- 
" derness of benevolence. They gained proselytes, but it was 
" by the eloquence of truth, assisted by the eloquence of meek- 
" ness, humility and piety ; verifying, in the whole series of 
" their conduct, that pleasing sentence of the prophet, — 'How 
'' 'beautiful on the hills, are the footsteps of those who bring 
" ' glad tidings P " 

" Neither were the exertions of their charity unattended by 
'^ the approbation of Heaven. Not only contemporary histo* 



^6 CONVERSION OF, &c. [Letter 

" rians attest, but several protestant writers allow, that God re- 
" warded them with the gift of miracles. Even the fierce en- 
" amy of every thing that is catholic, the martyrologist Fox, 
" admits this fact, — a fact, which confirms both the holiness 
" of the lives of these apostles, the lawfulness of their mission, 
" and, by a most logical inference, the truth of the holy reli- 
" gion which they were labouring to establish. ' The King^ 
^' says Fox, ' considered the honest conversation of their lives^ 
" ' and was moved with the miracles wrought through God'^s 
" ' hand by them."^^ 

" Under the influence of the sanction of such authority, 
" united to the influence of the methods by which these holy 
" men propagated the maxims of religion, it is easy to imagine 
". what would be the fruits and effects which resulted from 
" them. The fruits and effects were striking, — such precisely 
" as that zeal is calculated to produce, which is blessed by the 
" approbation of Heaven. A people, hitherto rude, savage, 
" barbarous and immoral, was changed into a nation mild, be- 
" nevolent, humane and holy : ' Every thing^"^ says Collier, 
u 6 Irightened^ as if nature had been melted down and re- 
" ' coined? " 

With these accounts of the conversion of our Anglo-Saxon 
ancestors, an English reader must be pleased. In eighty-two 
years from the arrival of St. Augustine, this mild, holy and be- 
neficent religion, which he preached, was spread in every part 
of Anglo-Saxon England. 

In the course of time the Anglo-Saxons themselves became 
missionaries ; and, with the same edifying zeal and prudence 
which had distinguished their first apostles, carried the faith of 
Christ into many foreign nations, then involved in idolatry. In 

* Acts and Monuments, col. 2. 



III.] DOCTRINES PREACHED. 27 

less than a century from the death of St. Augustine, the con- 
verts made by him preached the faith of Christ on the banks 
of the Oder, the Rhine and the Danube. St. Wilfrid preached 
the Gospel in Friesland ; St. Willibrod to the Prisons ; St. Bo- 
niface to the central and southern Germans, St. Willihad to the 
northern ; his disciples to the Danes ; St. Sigified to the 
Swedes ; and Haco, the king of Norway, was assisted by An- 
glo-Saxon missionaries in the conversion of his subjects. Many 
of these apostolical men suffered martyrdom in the exercise of 
their religious labours. In all these missions the preacher was 
either originally sent, or subsequently invested with missiona- 
ry powers, by the see of Rome.* 

An account of the literature and arts of the Anglo-Saxons is 
foreign to these pages : I invite all the readers of these letters 
to a perusal of what is said on this pleasing subject by doctor 
Lingard. They will acknowledge, that a much greater progress 
than could have been expected was made by the Anglo-Saxons 
in the sublimest sciences ; in many useful and ornamental 
arts ; and in almost every other pursuit that has a tendency to 
increase the well-being of mankind, f 



III. 2. 

Conformity of the Religion preached to the Jinglo- Saxons^ to 
that now taught by the Roman-catholic Church. 

The religion of a nation may be divided into its creed, its 
ceremonial, and its morality. 

*See doctor Lingard's Antiquities of the Anglo-Saxon Church, c. 13. 
f Ibid. c. 10. I have the greater pleasure in referring to doctor Lin- 
gard and Mr. Sharon Turner's works, on account of the authorities with 
which they always favour us. 



^8 DOCTRINES PREACHED. [Lettei* 

1 . The Apostles' creed was taught by the Anglo-Saxons as 
it is now taught to us. How large a proportion of the articles 
of their and our faith are contained in this venerable docu- 
ment! The doctrines of our Anglo-Saxon ancestors, respecting 
the supremacy of the pope; the real presence of Christ in the 
eucharist; the seven sacraments*, the invocation of the Virgin 
Mary, and the other saints ; and prayers for the dead, were the 
same as ours. Without entering upon any exposition or dis- 
cussion of their creed, we beg leave to refer our readers to 
what has been written on this subject by doctor Lingard, in 
his Antiquities of the Anglo-Saxon Church,* and by Mr. Man- 
ning, in his "England's Conversion and Reformation com- 
" pared."! 

2. To the former of these authors we refer for indisputable 
proof, that- there was no important difference between the re- 
ligious ceremonial of the Anglo-Saxons, and that which now 
prevails in the roman-catholic church ; and that, in points com- 
paratively indifferent, there is as little variation between them, 
as might be expected from the natural change of every thing, 
that is of human institution, or of human management. Most 
protestants, (but too often in criminatory language), admit this 
fact. " What," says doctor Humphreys, J " did Gregory and 
'^ Augustine bring into England ? Purgatory, the offering of the 
'' wholesome sacrifice, prayers for the dead, relics, transubstan- 

*See doctor Lingard's Antiquities of the Anglo-Saxon Church, c. 6, 7, 
8, 9. 

f Second Dialogue, s. 7, 8, 9. 

\ Jesuitismi, page 2, — Citations of passages to the same effect from 
writings of eminent protestant divines might easily be multiplied. Many 
are collected by father Persons in his *' Three Conversions of England," 
part the 1st, c. 9, IO3 and in Br«rely> " Protestants Apology for the Ro- 
man Church," Tract 2. s. 1.. 



m.] DOCTRINES PREACHED. 29 

" tiation, &c. and the rest of the confused heap of popish su- 
" perstition." 

3. The morality^ which the apostolic missionaries taught 
their Anglo-Saxon flocks, was that of the Gospel. I ask every 
candid pro testant whether this does not incontestibly appear 
from the writings of the venerable Bede ? May I not confi- 
dently call upon all, who are conversant with those valuable 
pages, to inform me whether the gospel inculcates a single duty, 
or recommends a single practice, which does not appear to 
have been taught and recommended by the apostles of the An- 
glo-Saxons, and their successors ? 

Much of what is said in the chapter of "the Book of the 
" Church," which now engages our attention, respecting the 
conversion of the Anglo-Saxons by St. Augustine, will be read 
by every roman-catholic with pleasure ; the following passage 
will be read by them with surprise and concern. You mention 
a vision, related to have been seen by Laurentius, one of the 
missionaries: "This," you affirm, "must be either miracle, 
" fraud, or fable. Many such there are in the history of the 
" Anglo-Saxon, as of every Romish church ; and it must be re- 
" membered, that, when such stories are mere fables, they have^ 
" for the most part, been feigned with the intent of serving the 
" interests of the Romish church, and promulgated, not as fic- 
" tion, but as falsehood, with a fraudulent mind. The legend 
" which is here related, is probably a wonder of the second 
" class. The clergy of that age thought it allowable to prac- 
" tise upon the ignorance and credulity of a barbarous people, 
" if by such means they might bring forward the work of their 
" conversion, or induce them, when converted, to lead a more 
" religious life. Whether they thought thus or not, it is cer- 
" tain that thus they acted; and it is not less certain, that a sys- 
" tern which admitted of pious fraud, opened a way for the most 
3* 



so DOCTRINES PREACHED. [Letter 

"impious abuses." In the next chapter you say, "the mis- 
''' sionaries were little scrupulous concerning the measures 
'' which they employed, because they were persuaded that any 
'' measures were justifiable if they conduced to bring about the 
" good end, which was their aim." 

Here we particularly lament your avowed plan of withhold- 
ing from your readers your authority for your assertions. To 
support the charge which, in the passage I have cited, you 
make against the Anglo-Saxon clergy, it was incumbent upon 
you to bring authentic evidence to prove their having published 
or practised fictions in the manner you have described; to pro- 
duce instances of it so numerous, as must justly fix the guilt on 
the general body of the Anglo-Saxon clergy] and to show that 
they acted on these occasions, not in consequence of the gene- 
mi weakness, or pravity of human nature, but under the impulse 
or sanction of their church or her doctrines. 

Nothing of this kind have you brought forward : all therefore 

that you say is mere accusation. To oppose, however, what 

you say, I shall transcribe a passage from one of the "Let- 

''^ters of the late Mr. Alban Butler to Mr. Archibald Bower," 

the author of "the History of the Popes." — "It is very unjust," 

says that very learned man, "to charge the popes, or the catho- 

"lic church, with countenancing /i:?io26'i??o-Z2/ false legends; see- 

" ing all the divines of that communion unanimously condemn 

'* all such forgeries, as lies in things of great moment, and 

" grievous sins ; and all the councils, popes, and other bishops, 

"have always expressed the greatest horror of such villainies, 

"which no cause or circumstances whatever can authorise, and 

" which, in things relating to religion, are always of the most 

" heinous nature. Hence the authors, when detected, have been 

" always punished with the utmost severity. 



IIL] DOCTRINES TAUGHT, &c. SI 

" To instance examples of this nature would form a com- 
" plete history. For the church has always most severely con- 
'^ demned all manner of forgeries."* 



IIL 3. 

Doctrine taught in Monasteries^ — great Misrepresentation of 
it hy two eminent Protestant Writers. 

If we credit doctor Robertson, "instead of aspiring to sanc- 
" tity and virtue, which alone can render men acceptable to 
" the great Author of Order and Excellence, the clergy ima- 
" gined that they satisfied every obligation of duty, by a scru- 
" pulous observance of external ceremonies. Religion, ac- 
" cording to their conception of it, comprehend nothing else ; 
" and the rites, by which they persuaded themselves that they 
" could gain the favour of Heaven, were of such a nature as 
" might have been expected from the rude ideas of the ages 
" which devised and introduced them. They were either so 
" unmeaning, as to be altogether unworthy of the Being to 
" whose honour they were consecrated ; or so absurd, as to be 
" a disgrace to reason and humanity. AH the religious maxims 

* Similar passages may be found in almost all the roman-catholic con- 
troversial writers. We prefer that, which we present to our readers, on 
account of the acknowledged learning and moderation of Mr. Alban But- 
ler ; the great esteem in which his writings are held by roman-catholics of 
every country, and the respect which was shown him by many protestant 
divines of our own, as doctor Lowth, doctor Keanicot, doctor Pearce, and 
doctor Lort ; and because Mr. Alban Butler is the author of the "Lives 
of the Saints," a work of uncommon erudition and piety, and universal- 
ly admired Translations of it have appeared in the French, Italian and 
Spanish languages. 



32 DOCTRINES TAUGHT, [Letter 

" and practices of the dark ages," continues the royal historio- 
grapher in a note to this passage, " are a proof of this. I shall 
" produce one remarkable testimony, in confirmation of it, from 
" an author canonized by the church of Rome, St. Eloy, or Eli- 
'' gius, bishop of Noyon, in the seventh century. 'He is a 
'' good christian who comes frequently to church; who pre- 
'^ sents the oblation, which is offered unto God upon the altar; 
" who doth not taste of the fruits of his own industry, until he 
" has consecrated a part of them to God; who, w^hen the holy 
" festivals approach, lives chastely, even with his own wife, 
" during several days, that with a safe conscience he may 
" draw near to the altar of God; and who, in the last place, can 
" repeat the creed and the Lord's prayer. Redeem then your 
" souls from destruction, w^hile you have the means in your 
" power; offer presents and tithes to churchmen; come more 
" frequently to church; humbly implore the patronage of the 
" saints ; for, if you observe these things, you may come with 
" security in the day to the tribunal of the Eternal 'Judge, and 
'^ say, Give to us, O Lord ! for we have given unto thee.' (Da- 
'' cherii Spicilegium. veter. Script, v. ii. p. 94.) The learned 
" and judicious translator of doctor Mosheim's Ecclesiastical 
'' History, from one of whose additional notes I have borrowed 
" this passage, subjoins a very proper reflection: 'We see here 
" a large and ample description of a good christian, in which 
'' there is not the least mention of the love of God, resignation 
'' to his will, obedience to his laws, or of justice, benevolence 
" or charity towards men.' (Mos. Eccles. Hist. v. i. p. 324.") 
A charge, expressed in more direct or stronger terms against 
the clergy of the middle ages, for teaching a false and depraved 
system of morality, cannot be imagined. What then must be 
the surprise of the reader, when, from the perusal of the follow- 
ing passage in Mr. Lingard's learned and elegant Antiquities of 



III.] MISREPRESENTED. 33 

the Anglo-Saxon Church^'*' he finds the whole to be an absolute 
misrepresentation? "From that period," says Mr. Lingard, — 
referring to the publication of doctor Robertson's History, — 
" this citation from the writings of St. Eloy, or St. Eligius, has 
" held a very distinguished place in every invective which has 
" been published against the clergy of former ages : and the de- 
'' finition of the good christian has been re-echoed a thousand 
'^ times by the credulity of writers, and their readers. May I 
" hope to escape the imputation of scepticism, when I own that 
" I have always been inclined to mistrust this host of witness- 
" es, and their quotations ? I at last resolved to consult the ori- 
" ginal document; nor were my expectations disappointed. I 
" discovered that the bishop of Noyon had been foully calum- 
" niated ; and that, instead of his real doctrine, a garbled extract 
" had been presented to the public. That the good christian 
" should pay the dues of the church, he indeed requires ; but 
'' he also requires, that he should cultivate peace among his 
" neighbours •, forgive his enemies ; love all mankind as him- 
" self; observe the precepts of the decalogue; and faithfully 
" comply with the engagements which he contracted at his bap- 
^^ tism." 

We insert the text of the bishop in a note-^f The fol- 

*P. 91,note (B ) 

t '^Non ergo vobis sufficit, clarissimi, quod christianum nomen accep- 
" istis; si opera Christiana non facitis. Illi enim prodest, quod christian- 
" us vocatur, qui semper Christi precepta mente retinet, et opere perfi- 
" cit ; qui furlum, scilicet, non facit ; qui falsum testimonium non dicit ; 
** qui nee mentitur, nee pejerat ; qui adulterium non committit ; qui nul- 
" lum hominem odit, sed omnes, sicut semetipsum, diligit ; qui inimicis 
" suis malum non reddit, sed magis pro ipsis orat ; qui lites non concitat, 
" sed diseordes ad eoncordiam rpvocat, &c," Dach. Spjcil, torn. v. p. 
213. 



34 DOCTRINES TAUGHT, &c. [Letter 

lowing is Mr. Lingard's translation of it : "It does not, there- 
" fore, most dear christians, suffice to you, that you have 
" received the christian name, unless you do christian works. 
" For to him it avails to be called a christian, who always 
" keeps in his mind the precepts of Christ, and fulfils 
" them by his works. Siich is he, who does not steal; who 
" does not bear false witness ; who does not lie, or for- 
" swear; who does not commit adultery; who hateth no one, 
" but loveth all as himself; who does not return evil to his ene- 
" mies, but rather prayeth for them ; who does not raise quar- 
'' rels, but recalls quarrellers to peace. On account of its simila- 
" rity," continues Mr. Lingard, "I shall subjoin another descrip- 
" tion of the good christian from an Anglo-Saxon prelate, Wul- 
'' Stan, archbishop of York : — ' Let us always profess one true 
" faith, and love God with all our mind and might; and care- 
^ fully keep all his commandments, and give to God that part 
" (of our substance,) which by his grace we are able to give; 
" and earnestly avoid all evil, and act righteously to all others^ 
" that is, behave to others as we wish others to behave to us. 
" He is a good christian who observeth this.' "* 

Such was the doctrine taught in the monasteries. May it not 
be confidently asked, whether it be not the morality of the gos- 
pel ? Whether any purer lessons of morality can be cited ? and 
whether the institutions in which it was taught, and without 
which it might not have been taught, were not, with all the im- 
perfections justly or unjustly imputed to them, eminently use* 
ful to the community ? 

* Sermo Lupi episc, ap. WhiL p. 487. 



III.] MIRACLES PERFORMED, &c. S5 



III. 4. 

Miracles performed by the Anglo-Saxon Missionaries, 

In this, and in many other parts of the work before us, you 
treat the miracles, performed by members of the roman-catholic 
church, with contempt and ridicule. The present is not a place 
for a full discussion of this important topic : I shall, therefore, 
only present you, — 1. With a short exposition of the roman- 
catholic doctrine upon it : — 2. With some observations sug- 
gested by the conflicting arguments of doctor Middleton, and 
his adversaries, in the controversy upon miracles, which took 
place between them towards the middle of the last century:. — 
3. And with some general observations on the credibility of 
the miracles, which are related to have been wrought in the 
roman-catholic church during the middle ages. 

1. It is known, that roman-catholics, relying with entire con- 
fidence on the promises of Christ, believe, that the power of 
working miracles was given hy Christ to his churchy and that it 
never has heen^ and never will Z>e, withdrawn from her. Through 
the prophet Joel,* God announced to the Jews, that "in the 
" last days he would pour out his spirit on all flesh"; that 
" their sons and their daughters should prophecy"; that. their 
" young men should see visions, and their old men dream 
" dreams." When St. Peter cited this prophecy to the Jews, 
assembled at the feast of Pentecost, he declared to them, that 
the promise contained in it "was made to them, to their chil- 
" dren, and to all that were afar off, whom the Lord God should 

♦ Chap. ii. 29, 30. 



36 MIRACLES [Letter 

" call."* Christ, in his last sermon, after exhorting St. Philip 
to believe in him as God, equal to his Father; and after appeal- 
ing to his Avorks, as the testimony given by his Father to this 
truth, expressed himself in the following solemn terms: "Ve- 
''rily! verily! I say unto you, he that believeth in me, the 
'' v^orks that I do, these shall he do, and greater works than 
"these he shall also do."| When, just before his ascension 
into heaven, Christ took his last leave of his apostles, and gave 
them his last blessing, he mentioned to them the signs which 
should follow those who believed: "In my name," he said, 
" they shall cast out de\dls ; they shall speak with new tongues ; 
" they shall take up serpents ; and, if they eat any thing dead- 
" ly, it shall not hurt them ; they shall lay their hands on the 
^' sick, and they shall be cured." [j; 

Here roman-catholics confidently ask :— -Did not Christ pro- 
mise by these words, that miracles should be wrought in his 
church ? That they should be wrought without limitation of 
time ? That some of these should be greater than his own } 

To say that the promise failed would be impiety. Some- 
w^here, therefore, miracles must have been uninterruptedly 
wrought. Now, the roman-catholic is the only church, whicli, 
from the first propagation of Christianity until the present time, 
has had a visible and uninterrupted existence : uninterrupted 
miracles, therefore, could only have existed in the roman-cath- 
olic church. They could not possibly have existed in any 
church, which separated from the see of Rome at the time of 
the Reformation; for, to use an expression of Bossuet, in his 
controversy with M. Claude, "when the church of the reform- 
" ers first separated from the one, the holy, the roman-catholic 
" church, their church could not by their own confession enter 
"into communion with a single church in the whole world." 

» Acts, ii. 39. t John, xiv 12, 13. J Mark, xvi 17, 18. 



III.] ON MIRACLES. 37 

2. The general position, that a constant succession of mira- 
cles in a church is a proof of the truth of its religious creed, 
seems to be universally admitted. "It is," says doctor Mid- 
dleton in his Free Enquiry,^ "a maxun, which must be al- 
" lowed by all christians, that whenever any sacred rite or re- 
"ligious institution becomes the instrument of miracles, we 
" ought to consider that rite as confirmed by divine approba- 
"• tion." 

It necessarily follows, that if roman-catholics prove a con- 
stant succession of miracles in their church, they consequently 
establish the truth of her doctrine. 

Aware of this inference, the protestant divines found it in- 
cumbent on them to contend, that at some period in the chris- 
tian aera, there was a cessation of miracles in the christian 
church. Being required to specify this aera, they answered 
that it was when the corruption of Christianity became general. 
They were then required to specify the period when this gen- 
eral corruption took place. Here a considerable disagreement 
was found among them. Some assigned it to the fourth, some 
to the fifth, some even to the sixth century ; but the generality 
assigned it to the conversion of the emperor Constantine. 
Then, according to their system, Christianity became the reli- 
gion of the state • and, being supported by the secular arm, the 
christians no longer put their trust in God, and a general cor- 
ruption of Christianity ensued. From this time, therefore, the 
Almighty ceased to recognize their church, and withdrew from 
her the supernatural powers, with which, till then, He had in- 
vested her. 

Such is the account which protestant writers give of the 
supposed aera of the corruption of Christianity. It is evident, 

* 3d edition, p. i. xiy. 



38 CONTROVERSY [Letter 

that whatever *may be the period which they assign for it, there 
must be error in the assignment, if miracles were subsequently 
wrought in the catholic church, as it never can be supposed 
that the Almighty would work miracles in the support of a 
corrupted church. Now, the roman-catholics produce a regu- 
lar chain of miracles, wrought in every subsequent age of 
Christianity. Then, as the protestants admit the existence of mi- 
racles, in the ages which preceded the aera assigned by them for 
the corruption of Christianity, it became incumbent upon them 
to disprove the miracles alleged by the roman-catholics to have 
been wrought in the subsequent ages ; and this they could on- 
ly do, by showing that the evidence for them was not so strong 
as the evidence adduced in support of the miracles wrought in 
the preceding ages, and allowed and credited by themselves. 

Here doctor Middleton intervened. It is, by his account, im- 
possible for protestants to show, that miracles ceased at any of 
the aeras assigned by them, as the catholics, in his judgment, 
can incontrovertibly demonstrate, that the sanctity, the talents, 
and the discernment of those, on whose testimony the miracles 
in the subsequent ages depended, were not inferior to the sanc- 
tity, the talents, and discernment of those whose testimony for 
the miracles of the preceding ages the protestants themselves 
accepted, and pronounced to be sufficient. "As far as the 
" church historians can illustrate or throw light upon any thing, 
" there is not," says doctor Middleton*, " a single point in his- 
" tory, so constantly, explicitly, and unanimously affirmed by 
" them all, as the continual succession of these powers, through 
" all ages, from the earliest father who mentions them, down 
" to the time of the Reformation; which same succession is 
" still further deduced by persons of the most eminent charac- 
^ ter for their probity, learning, and dignity in the Romish 

*Inti. XT. XYi. 



III.] ON MIRACLES. 39 

'' church to this v^ery day. So that the only doubt which can 
" remain with us is, whether the church historians are to be 
^ trusted or not ; for if any credit be due to them in the present 
" case, it must reach either to all, or to none ; because the rea- 
^' son for believing them, in any One age, will be found to be of 
" equal force in all, as far as it depends on the characters of the 
" persons attesting, or the nature of the things attested." 

Pursuing his argument, doctor Middleton confined the pow- 
er of working miracles, to the apostolic age. According to his 
system, it was bestowed on the apostles, and during the lives of 
the apostles on others ; but it ceased entirely on the decease of 
all the apostles, and never more appeared in the christian world. 
After generally noticing the miracles of the six first ages, " I 
" see nothing," says this learned and acute writer,* " which can 
" stop the progress from the sixth age down to the present, 
" from pope Gregory the Great to pope Clement the Twelfth ; 
'• for each succeeding age will furnish miracles, and witnesses 
^ too of as good credit as those of the sixth. Grant the Ro- 
" manist but a single age of miracles after the times of the 
" apostles we shall be entangled in a series of difficulties, 
'' whence we can never fairly extricate ourselves, unless we 
*' allow the same powers also to the present age." 

Such was doctor Middleton's system, respecting the miracles 
wrought in the christian church. He supported it in the work, 
which we have mentioned, with great ability. It gave consid- 
erable alarm: an host of divines rose in arms again him; and 
a controversial war ensued. The assailants displayed learn- 
ing and talent; but, when doctor Middleton asked the over- 
whelming question, — What greater right to credit does the tes- 
timony admitted by you possess, than the testimony which you 
reject? It must be admitted that he received no satisfactory 

answer. 

Inti. I. XXXII. xcTi. 



40 CONTROVERSY Letter 

On the other hand, when the adversaries of doctor Middle- 
ton turned upon him, and asked, — Why greater credit should 
be given to the writers of the apostolic age, than to the wri- 
ters of the succeeding ages ? this question was found to be 
equally overwhelming; and the doctor could never be brought 
to give it a direct answer. If he answered it in consistency 
with the opinions which he himself avowed, and attempted to 
enforce against his adversaries, he must have said, that the 
apostolic and the succeeding writers were entitled to the same 
degree of credit. From this it would have followed, that, as 
he thought the succeeding writers entitled to no credit, neither 
did he think the apostolic writers entitled to any. This, it was 
evident, would sap the very foundations of Christianity. Aware 
of this, doctor Middleton always evaded the question. This 
did not escape the observation, either of his adversaries, or of 
the general observers of the controversy; and it thus became 
almost an universal opinion, that his "Free Enquiry" was vir- 
tually, and perhaps intentionally, an attack upon all miracles, 
and through them, on Christianity itself. 

"Doctor Middleton's undertaking," says Mr. Chalmers in 
his Biographical Dictionary, "justly alarmed the clergy, and 
" all friends to religion; since it was impossible to succeed, 
" without tainting, in some degree, the scripture miracles. 
"They thought, too, that even the canon of scripture must not 
" be a little affected, if the fathers, on whose credit the authen- 
" ticity of its books in some measure depended, were so utter- 
" ly despised." 

It is true that doctor Middleton might have answered, that 
the difference between the apostolic writers, so far at least as 
the case rested between the writers of the New Testament, and 
the writers in after-times, was, that the former were inspired; 
and that all they related was, therefore, necessarily true. But 



in.] ON MIRACLES. 41 

this answer would only have removed the difficulty by a sin- 
gle step. In reply to it, the doctor's adversaries would have 
asked, — On what he considered the evidence of the inspiration 
of the New Testament, or even the evidence of the authentici- 
ty of a single copy of it to rest? — ^To the question, doctor Mid- 
dleton must have answered, — on human testimony. The over- 
whelming question would then have immediately followed,— 
What right to credit does the testimony for it possess, upon 
your principles, that is not possessed, in an equal degree, by 
the testimony in favour of the miracles .of every age ? — in fa- 
vour even of some which you so superciliously reject? To this 
question doctor Middleton could have made no reply. 

Such was the result of this celebrated controversy. It pro- 
duced a great sensation, and made impressions which have not 
been obliterated. 

In general, roman-catholics kept aloof from it. They per- 
ceived how greatly it served their cause. They thought it 
clear, that, — when doctor Middleton proved, against his anta- 
gonists, that the evidence brought by them in support of the 
miracles, which they allowed was not greater than the evi- 
dence produced for the miracles which they rejected, — he com- 
pletely established the roman-catholic doctrine of the uninter- 
rupted succession of miracles in their church : and that, on the 
other hand, — when the adversaries of doctor Middleton proved 
against him, that the inspiration of the New Testament, and 
even the authenticity of its text, could only be proved by testi- 
mony, — they completely established the roman-catholic doc- 
trine of tradition. 

It does not appear from the ''Book of the Church," whether, 
in respect to the point under consideration, we should class 
you with doctor Middleton, or with doctor Middleton's anta- 
gonists. If with the former^ we wish you to explain, in some 
4* 



4S CONTROVERSY ^ [Letter 

future edition of your work, in what manner, without resorting 
to tradition^ it can be proved that the sacred writings are in- 
spired; and, therefore, entitled to the superior credit which doc- 
tor Middleton claimed for them : If the latter, we wish to see 
your reasons for preferring the miracles, which preceded the 
period assigned by the antagonists of the doctor for the cessa- 
tion of miracles, to those which followed that period. 

But, — while the roman-catholics assert, that it has pleased 
Almighty God to work in every age, from the first preaching of 
the gospel to the present time, many and incontestible miracles 
in favour of his church and her doctrines, they admit, without 
qualification, that no miracles^ except those lohich are related 
in the Old or the Kew Testament^ are articles of faith ; that a 
person may disbelieve every other miracle, and may even dis- 
believe the existence of the persons, through whose intercession 
they are related to have been wrought, without ceasing to be a 
roman-catholic. This is equally agreeable to religion and com- 
mon sense \ for all miracles, which are not recorded in holy 
writ, depend on human reasoning. Now, human reasoning 
being always fallible, all miracles depending on it rest on falli- 
ble proof; and, consequently, maybe untrue. Hence the di- 
vines of the roman-catholic church never impose the belief of 
particular miracles, either upon the body of the faithful or upon 
individuals ; they only recommend the belief of them. They 
never recommend the belief of any, the credibility of which 
does not appear to them to be supported by evidence of the 
highest nature, and, while they contend that the evidence is of 
this description, and cannot, therefore, be rationally disbeliev- 
ed, they admit that it is still no more than human testimony, 
and therefore liable to error. Doctor Milner rejects,* in the 

* End of Controversy, Letter xxiv. 



III.] ON MIRACLES. 43 

wholesale, the miractes related in the ^'Golden Legend" of Ja- 
cobus de Voragine ; those related in the " Speculum" of Vincen- 
tius Belluacensis ; and those related in the "Saints Lives" of 
the patrician Metaphiastes : no roman-catholic gives credit to 
those which rest on Surius, or Monbritius. Doctor Lingard* 
calls Osbert, the biographer of St. Duns tan, and the writer of 
his life, "an injudicious biographer, whose anile credulity col- 
" lected and embellished every fable." Doctor Lingard, also, 
while he asserts| that there are many miracles in the Anglo- 
Saxon times, which it would require no small ingenuity to dis- 
prove, and incredulity to discredit, admits that "there are also 
" many which must shrink from the frown of criticism ; some, 
" which may have been the effect of accident or im.agination ; 
" some, that are more calculated to excite the smile than the 
" wonder of the readers* and some, which, on whatever 
" ground they were originally admitted, depend, at the present, • 
" on the distant testimony of writers, not remarkable for saga- 
" city or discrimination. It was their misfortune," says the 
same excellent writer, " that the knowledge of these writers of 
" miracles was not equal to their piety. Of their censors, 'it 
" may sometimes be said, that their piety was not equal to their 
" knowledge." 

This exposition of the roman-catholic doctrine respecting 
miracles has been often given. May I not ask, if it be either 
just or generous to harass the present catholics with the weak- 
nesses of the ancient writers of their communion ; and to at- 
tempt to render their religion and themselves odious by these 
unceasing and offensive repetitions ? 

In a sermon, preached before queen Elizabeth, doctor Jew- 
ell, " the learned, venerated, and authorized organ of the protest- 

* Antiquities of the Anglo-Saxon Church, c. xii. n. 6. 
t Ibid. c. ix. 



44 CONTROVERSY, &c. [Letter III. 

" ant church," as he is called by the bishop of St. David's, re- 
presented to her majesty, that "witches and sorcerers wonder- 
" fully increased ;" that "her majesty's subjects pined away 
" until death;" that "their colours faded, their flesh rottened^ 
"their speech was removed, and their senses bereft." Incon- 
sequence of this representation, her majesty and the lords spi- 
ritual and temporal, in parliament assembled, made witchcraft 
felony. Numbers suffered upon it in that and subsequent 
reigns. What would a protestant think of a roman-catholic 
who should now revile the church of England, on account of 
this sermon, and the act of parliament which followed it; and 
should attempt to identify them with the actual doctrines of 
the established church ? By parity of reason, may not a roman- 
catholic justly complain, when a protestant brings forward the 
miserable story of St. Dunstan pinching the devil's nose, and 
other tales of this sort; and represents them as forming part of 
the faith or doctrines of the catholic church ? 

Surely it is time that this kind of contention should cease. If 
there must be controversy between catholics and protestants, 
let it always be the controversy of scholars and gentlemen : — 
such controversy as was waged between Laud and Fisher; be- 
tween Chillingworth and Knott: — such as we find in the ele- 
gant letters of father Scheffmaker ; and the learned treatise of 
doctor Isaac Barrow. Such, in fine, as we meet with in doc- 
tor Milner's "Letters to a Prebendary," and in his "End of 
" Controversy;" I have greatly availed of these in the letters 
which I now have the honour to address to you. I particular- 
ly recommend the perusal of them to you and every protestant, 
who sincerely wishes to be informed of our religious tenets, of 
the arguments by which we support them, and of the history 
of the English roman-catholics since the Reformation. 



Letter IV.] CONVERSION OF, &c. ' 45 



LETTER IV. 

causes which promoted the success of christianity 
among the anglo-saxons. 

Sir, 

This is an important chapter. A roman-catholic will pe- 
ruse with pleasure the ample tribute of commendation which 
you pay, in parts of it, to the conduct of the roman missiona- 
aries; to the doctrine which they preached; and to the man- 
ner in which they preached it. Still you are sometimes unjust 
to them. On these parts of the chapter I shall offer some ob- 
servations: I shall attempt to show, — I. That the conduct of 
the missionaries was, under providence, the chief cause of their 
success in preaching the gospel: — II. I shall notice an un- 
founded charge brought by you, in this chapter, against the 
Anglo-Saxon clergy: — And III. examine your assertion, that 
the faith of the Welch was purer than that taught by St. Au- 
gustine to the Anglo-Saxons. 



46 CONVERSION OF [Letter 



IV. 1. 

The Conduct of the Missionaries was^ under Providence^ the 
chief Cause of their Success, 

You ask,— why " Christianity should have been established 
" so early, and with such little struggle in England, seeing that 
" its introduction into heathen ccTuntries has, in later centuries, 
" been found so exceedingly difficult, as at one time to be gen- 
" erally considered hopeless, and almost impossible, without a 
" miracle ?" You assign for its early and quiet establishment 
among the Anglo-Saxons several natural causes. I coincide 
with you in opinion, that all the causes you mention were fa- 
vourable to the introduction and propagation of Christianity in 
England. 

Several natural causes had, in like manner, been favourable 
to its introduction and propagation in the Roman world. All 
history shows, that the wisdom of Providence frequently uses 
the circumstances of mankind as instruments for^its purposes ; 
and thus frequently accomplishes its designs, partially at least, 
by human means. 

But was not the success of the Anglo-Saxon apostles prin- 
cipally owing, under Providence, to their correspondence with 
the graces and gifts, which it pleased the Almighty to bestow 
upon them? None of the circumstances mentioned by you to 
have been favorable to the introduction and extension of the 
gospel among the Anglo-Saxons, existed in some of the coun- 
tries in which it was preached by St. Augustine's disciples ; yet 
the success of the disciples was every where equal to the sue- 



IV.] THE ANGLO-SAXONS. 47 

cess of their Master. Should it not, therefore, be chiefly attri- 
buted to their having possessed the same virtues } 

In how many portions of the habitable globe have roman- 
catholic missions, even under the most discouraging circum- 
stances, been attended with equal success ? In opposition to 
the ruling powers, and often under severe persecutions, count- 
less conversions have been made by roman-catholic missiona- 
ries in Madeira, Cochin-china, Tonquin, the empire of China, 
the peninsula of Corea; among the Hurons, Miamis, Illinois, 
and other tribes of North America ; among the savages of Pa 
raguay, Uraguay and Panama *, among the wild Moxos, Chi- 
quits and Canizians. All these countries have been watered 
with the blood of roman-catholic missionaries ; and, to use the 
well-known expression of TertuUian, "their blood became the 
seed of the church." 



IV. 2. 

Unfounded Charge brought in this Chapter against the Anglo- 
Saxon Clergy, 

Towards the middle of this chapter,* you broadly describe 
the missionaries, as "pplitic in contrivance; little scrupulous 
" concerning the measures which they employed, because they 
" were persuaded that any measures were justifiable, if they 
" conduced to bring about the good end which was their aim." 

You must admit, that the principle which you impute in this 
place to the Anglo-Saxon missionaries is most nefarious, and 
fraught with the worst consequences. You must also admit, 
that a charge of this nature, when it is brought against an indi- 

►Vol. 1, p. 55,56. 



48 ANGLO-SAXON AND [Letter 

vidual, can only be proved by producing either his own ac- 
knowledgment of it, or else such facts as establish it by just 
inference ; and that, when it is brought against a body of men, 
it can only be proved by producing a multiplicity of such ac- 
knowledgments, or a multiplicity of such facts. But in the 
present case, where are these acknowledgments ? Where are 
these facts? 



IV. 3. 

Alleged purer Faith of the Welch, 

''The Saxons," you inform us, "received Christianity with 
" its latest ceremonials, additions, and doctrinal corruptions. 
" The Welch were possessed of a purer faith." 

But can the slightest evidence of their purer faith be pro- 
duced ? Gildas, who was himself a Welchman, and a contem- 
porary with St. Augustine, censures, in the strongest terms, the 
morals of the clergy of Wales, and their neglect of clerical du- 
ty. Is it then likely, that their faith should have been purer 
than that of St. Augustine ? Add to this, that one of St. Augus- 
tine's demands of the Welch was, that they should join him, 
and his companions, in preaching the word of God to the pa- 
gans:* Would he have made this demand if there had not been 
the strictest unity of faith between himself and the clergy of 
Wales ? His only other demands were, that they should adopt 
the Roman ritual in the administration of baptism ; observe the 
computation of Easter, used in every other part of Christendom ; 
and submit to the metropolitan jurisdiction over them, which 
the pope had conferred upon him. All the demands of St. Au- 

♦ Doctor Lingard's Antiquities of the Anglo-Saxon Church, p. 2. 



IV.] WELCH CLERGY. 49 

gustine were refused. From this you infer, thart their religious 
creed differed from that of the Rom^n see, and give to their's 
a decided preference. I beg leave to observe, that the differ- 
ence between the baptismal rite observed by the Welch, and 
the right which St. Augustine required them to observe, was a 
mere difference in form, not a difference in substance ; that the 
difference between them in the computation of Easter, respect- 
ed an observance in which no point of faith was implicated^ 
and that their refusal to acknowledge St. Augustine for their 
archbishop and metropolitan, was no greater assertion of the 
independence of their church, on an intermediate prelate^ ihem 
in every aera of Christianity, and in every part of the christian 
world, roman-cathohc prelates of the fairest fame, recognized 
by the see of Rome to be in communion with her, and unequi- 
vocally acknowledging her supremacy, have strenuously as- 
serted against her in points of local discipline. It should be 
added, that the Welch, notwithstanding these differences, were 
always in communion with the see of Rome ; and, at no very 
distant period, conformed, in all the points which have been 
mentioned, to the general discipline of the roman-catholic 
church. 



50 THE DANES. [Utter 



LETTER V. 
religion of the danes their conversioiv. 

Sir, 

In this chapter you give an account of the mythology of the 
Scandinavian nations. It gives me pleasure to mention it 
with unqualified praise; and to add, that having many years 
ago paid particular attention to this subject, and presented the 
result to the public,* I now find, with pleasure, that it coincides 
altogether with that which the public actually receive from 
your much-abler pen. 

In this chapter, the piracy of the Danes is properly noticed. 
Mr. Sharon Turner's account of the sea-kings, and of Vitingr 
of the North, in his History of the Anglo-Saxons, is singularly 
interesting. 

I cannot refuse myself the pleasure of transcribing the ac- 
count which, in the chapter now before me, you give of the 
blessings diffused over all Scandinavia, by the propagation of 
Christianity in those extensive regions. "By the policy, the 
" steady system of the popes, the admirable zeal of the Bene- 
" dictines, and by the blessing of God, which crowned all, the 

* Horae Biblicse, part 2. The Edda. 
t Page 68. 



v.] THE DANES. 61 

" whole of the Scandinavian nations were converted, about the 
" time of the Norman Conquest; and thus an end was put to 
" those religions which made war their principle, and, sancti- 
" fying the most atrocious and cursed actions, had the misery 
" of mankind for their end." In a former page* you remark, 
that "to the servile part of the community the gospel was in- 
" deed tidings of great joy; frequently they were emancipated, 
" either in the first fervor of the owner's conversion, or as an 
" act of atonement, and meritorious charity, at death." For 
these expressions, I most sincerely thank you : but I must en- 
treat you to keep in mind, that the conversions you speak of, 
and which you describe to have been attended with so many 
spiritual and so many temporal blessings, w^ere conversions ef- 
fected by roman-catholic missionaries to the roman-catholic 
faith. Can such a faith deserve a harsh word ^ 

♦Vol. l,book2, c. 2, p. 203. 



68 DUNSTAN. [Letter 



LETTER VL 

t 

the anglo-saxon church st. dunstan. 

Sir, 

An attentive perusal of what doctor Lingard has written in 
his Antiquities of the Anglo-Saxon Church, and of what the 
same author, and Mr. Sharon Turner, have said in their re- 
spective histories of England, — -and an examination of all the 
authorities adduced by them, — have convinced me, that St. 
Dunstan is entitled to the praise of probity, talent, and true re- 
ligion. Such was the opinion of every writer, whose works 
have reached us, from the time in which St. Dunstan lived, till 
the aera of the Reformation. Then, without the discovery of a 
single new fact, that could justify a change of opinion, St. Dun- 
stan became an object of the most contumelious abuse; andy 
since that time, it has been always on the increase. You now 
describe him as a perfect monster : — differing from you in this 
regard, I request your particular attention to this letter. 1 shall 
mention, — I. The early years of St. Dunstan: — II. His con- 
duct towards king Edwin: — III. His conduct towards king 
Edgar : — IV. His enforcing the celibacy of the clergy : — V. fiis 
introduction of the Benedictine monks in the room of the secu- 
lar canons : — And VL His miracles. 



VI DUNSTAN, 55 



VI. 1. 

Early Years of Su Dunstan, 

His family was noble. All historians agree that his educa- 
tion was suitable to his birth ; that his proficiency, both in sa- 
cred and profane literature, was great j that he was eminently 
skilled in the elegant arts of music, painting, engTaving, and 
working in metals; and that his knowledge, and exemplary 
conduct, made him universally respected and beloved, and des- 
tined him, in public opinion, to the highest dignities, and most 
important employments. While he was thus rapidly advanc- 
ing to distinction, he fell into disgrace at court, and was visited 
by a long illness. In these serious hours, he determined to 
embrace a religious life ; and, sometime after his recovery, re- 
ceived the order of priesthood, and with it the monastic habit. 
He was attached to the parish church of Glastonbury ; still he 
lived in retirement, and devoted in an obscure and humble cell, 
all the time which his parochial duties left at his disposal, to 
prayer and penitential austerities. He distributed his own for- 
tune, and a considerable property which had been bequeathed 
to him, between his church and the poor. His virtues attract- 
ed the attention of Edmund, his sovereign : he conferred on him 
the royal palace and manor of Glastonbuiy, and appointed him 
abbot of the adjoining convent of Benedictine monks. Edred, 
the brother and successor of Edmund, showed him the same 
favour. Edred was succeeded by Edvvin, a dissolute youth, 
then in his fourteenth year. 

Such was the early life of Dunstan. Modern writers profess 
to discover in it strong indications of hypocrisy, turbulence, and 

ambition. To me, these are invisible, unless it be certain that 

6* 



54 DUNSTAN. [Letter 

a person, who retires in his youth from the dignities and gaudes 
of the world, spends many years in privacy and humble occu- 
pations, and afterwards attains great dignities in the church, 
must necessarily hence have been hypocritical, turbulent, and 
ambitious in his youth. 



VI. 2. 

TJie Conduct of SU Dunstan towards King Edwin, 

At the time of which we are now writing, two women, Ethel- 
giva, and Elgiva her daughter, frequented the monarch's court. 
^' The former," says an antient writer, " was of high rank, but 
" silly. She followed the king every where, and endeavoured, 
'^ by familiar and shameful blandishments, to induce him to 
" unite himself to her, or to her daughter, by the tie of marriage. 
" Shameful to relate, each submitted to the monarch's will." 
Decency compels us to suppress the rest of the scandalous nar- 
rative. On the day of his coronation, the monarch, the clergy, 
and the nobility, assembled, as was customary on this occasion, 
at a sumptuous feast. In the midst of some serious discourse, 
the monarch suddenly rose from the table, and hurried into an 
adjoining apartment. There, Ethelgiva and Elgiva awaited 
him. The assembled ecclesiastics and nobles felt themselves 
insulted ; they expressed thoir indignation by a general mur- 
mur ; and unanimously commanded Dunstan and Kinsey, a 
prelate of royal blood, to repair to the apartment, and bring 
back the monarch, willing or unwilling, to his seat. Kinsey 
and Dunstan found the sovereign in a situation which it would 
be offensive to our readers to describe, and his royal crown on 
the floor. The monarch was unwilling to quit the scene of in- 
famy. Dunstan strongly represented to him the consequences 



VI.] DUNSTAN. 55 

of his conduct ; dragged him from the embraces of the women; 
placed the crown upon his head ; and returned with him to the 
banquet.* It is surprising that the conduct of Dimstan, on 
this occasion, should be the subject of modern blame. The 
monarch had outraged decency; the clergy and nobles were 
irritated ; and the worst consequences might have followed : 
Dunstan brought back the unwise youth to the assembly, and 
thus stifled the discontent. 

But his conduct was resented, both by the king and Ethelgi- 
va. He was banished from the court, confined to his monaste- 
ry, and threatened with personal violence. Then, with the 
permission of the earl of Flanders, he retired to the monastery 
of St. Peter at Ghent; but Edwin and Ethelgiva pursued their 
vengeance against him. His two abbeys at Glastonbury and 
Abingdon were dissolved, and the monks expelled from them. 
Edwin continued his connexions with Ethelgiva : the Witten- 
agemot, which was both the supreme council, and the supreme 
judicial tribunal of the nation, took cognizance of it, and threat- 
ened Ethelgiva with ignominious punishment, if she should 
persist in her scandalous conduct. She paid no attention to 
their representations, and the scandal continued. By the di- 
rection of the Wittenagemot, she was branded with a hot iron, 
and conveyed out of the kingdom. The public discontent in- 
creased : all the provinces on the North of the Humber re- 
volted, and transferred their allegiance to Edgar, the brother of 
Edwin. 

A civil war ensued : Ethelgiva returned from her banishment, 
but was seized and murdered by a party of the insurgent sol- 
diers. To put an end to the distraction of the nation, the Wit- 
tenagemot interfered, and divided the kingdom between the 
two brothers. On the death of Edwin, which happened soon 

* See Lingard's Hist. Vol. I. Note (A,) 2. 643. 



56 DUNSTAN. [Letter 

after this event, Edgar became the sole possessor of the Anglo- 
Saxon throne. Modern historians have worked the misfortunes 
of Ethelgiva and Elgiva into a very tragic tale, and described 
Dunstan as the author of their calamities ; but must not all who 
read doctor Lingard's account of them, and examine his author- 
ities, acknowledge that the tale is considerably embellished, and 
wholly acquit Dunstan of having acted any part in it. During 
the whole of these proceedings, Dunstan was in Flanders. 



VI. 3. 

The Conduct of St, Dunstan towards King Edgar. 

From the time of his being sent into banishment, till the 
death of Edwin, Dunstan remained abroad. One of the earli- 
est acts of king Edgar, after the death of his brother, was to re- 
call Dunstan. After his return he was successively promoted 
to the bishoprics of Worcester and London, and to the archie- 
piscopal see of Canterbury. 

Edgar uniformly displayed great talents for government; but 
he too often yielded to his passions. It is a strong argument in 
favour of the historical fidelity of the monastic writers, that al- 
though Edgar was one of their greatest benefactors, all of them 
have represented his vices and follies in the strongest colours. 
On one occasion Edgar violated, in a convent, a lady of noble 
birth, who resided among the nuns. After the first ferment of 
his passion had subsided, Dunstan waited on the monarch, and 
pointed out to him the enormity of his crime : Edgar submitted 
both to the prelate's admonitions, and to the penance imposed 
by him. The prelate enjoined him to abstain, during ten years, 
from wearing his crown ; and to observe a rigorous fast during 



VI] DUNSTAN. 67 

two days in every week ; to distribute large alms among the 
poor *, to publish a code of laws for the more impartial admin- 
istration of justice ; and to transmit, at his own expense, to the 
different counties of the Anglo-Saxon monarchy, copies of the 
holy scriptures. These salutary severities restored the monarch 
to a sense of his duty and to the esteem of his people. It 
seems difficult to contend with success, that the conduct of 
Dunstan, on this occasion, is not entitled to unqualified com- 
mendation. 



VL 4. 

St, DunstanPs Regulations for the Celibacy of the Clergy. 

One of the first measures adopted by St. Dunstan, to effect a 
reformation of the discipline of the Anglo-Saxon church, was 
to restore the celibacy of the clergy. 

The roman-catholic church considers the married state to be 
honourable*, but, in conformity to the doctrine repeatedly an- 
nounced by Christ and his apostles, she prefers to it the state 
of virginity. She also considers, that many things in the mar- 
ried state are impediments to 'the perfect discharge of the du- 
ties of the sacred ministry; and has, therefore, enjoined, that 
the clergy should observe continence. It is always better 
to cite one than many authorities : I beg leave, therefore, to re- 
fer you, and all my readers who wish for complete information 
on this subject, to the dissertation upon it, which doctor Mil- 
ner has inserted in his excellent " History of Winchester:" I 
believe that, if they peruse it impartially, they will think it 
abundantly demonstrates, that bishops, priests and deacons were 
obliged, from the yery infancy of the church, to observe the 



58 DUNSTAN. [Letter 

law of continency ; and that, towards the end of the sixth cen- 
tury, this law was introduced, with Christianity itself, by St. 
Augustine and his' companions, among our Anglo-Saxon an- 
cestors. How can those who contest this fact get over, either 
the unanimous resolution of the fathers assembled at the second 
council of Carthage, in favour of this article of catholic disci- 
pline ? Or their unanimous testimony, that it was taught by 
the apostles ? The clergy of the established church of Eng- 
land were first allowed to marry by an act passed in the second 
year of the reign of Edward VI. It is not a little remarkable, 
that the preamble to this very act states, " that it would be bet- 
'- ter for the estimation of priests, and also for the administration 
" of the gospel, for them to live chaste." Queen Elizabeth's 
dislike of the marriages of priests is known to you, and every 
person of learning. They, therefore, who express themselves 
harshly upon this doctrine, should a little consider, that the 
catholic doctrine, which they now so strongly reprobate, was 
favoured by many, who are actual objects of their incessant 
praise. 

But although the dissertation, to which we have referred, 
should fail to prove to our readers the very high antiquity, or 
the universal prevalence which it assigns to the law for the ce- 
libacy of the clergy, can any dispassionate person blame St. 
Dunstan for enforcing it, if he considers the great length of 
time during which it has been not only approved, but thought an 
essential point of christian discipline in every age, and in every 
country, by persons of distinguished character ; and that, be- 
fore the doctrines of the reformation were propagated, neither 
the doctrine itself, nor the manner in which it was established, 
was ever a subject even of the slightest obloquy } Generally 
speaking, the characters of eminent persons should be estimat- 
ed, not by the maxims of another age, but by the maxims of 



VI.] DUNSTAN. 59 

their own ; and, where their conduct cannot be wholly approv- 
ed of, great indulgence should be shown to it, when it appears 
to have been approved by the good and the wise of their own 
time. 



VI. 5. 

St. Dunstan^s Substitution of the Benedictine Monks to the 

Secular Canons. 

You, and other protestant writers, represent this as a deed 
of extreme injustice; as a crafty design to increase the pow- 
er of the sovereign pontiff, by placing the whole ecclesiasti- 
cal economy of the kingdom in the hands of the regulars, a bo- 
dy of ecclesiastics pre-eminently devoted to the pontiff, and ab- 
solutely subject to his control. 

Archbishop Parker, and those who join him in this represen- 
tation, describe the secular clergy of these times as honourable 
men, respectable ministers of the church, and guilty of no crime, 
but that of living piously in legitimiate marriage. The descrip- 
tion given of them by their contemporaries, and by the writers 
in the period which immediately followed it, is very different. 
You yourself represent the clergy of Dunstan's age as " gross- 
" ly ignorant, and partaking of the coarse dissolute manners of 
'^ their countrj^men." After this concession, supported as it is 
by the concurrent testimony which we have mentioned, there is 
strong reason to suppose that the corruption, complained of, 
could only be removed by strong measures. The substitution 
of the Benedictine monks to the secular canons was certainly 
a measure of this description. It met with great opposition : 
two councils were held upon it. " Dunstan," — ^you intimate, — 



60 DUNSTAN. [Letter 

'' took care that the third, which was held at Calne, should he 
" decisive. The king was kept away, on account of his youth, 
'^though he had been present at the former meetings. Boer- 
'' nelm, a Scottish bishop, pleaded the cause of the clergy with. 
^' great ability ; alleging scripture in their behalf, and custom ; 
" and arguing upon the morality and reason of the case, against 
" the celibacy, to which by these new laws they were to be 
" compelled. His speech produced a great effect ; and Dun- 
'' Stan did not attempt to answer it: he had laid aside," says 
his biographer, " all his means but prayer. You endeavour," 
said he, " to overcome me, who am now growing old, and dis- 
" posed to silence rather than contention. I confess that I am 
" unwilling to be overcome ; and I commit the cause of the 
" church to Christ himself, as judge. No sooner had these 
" words been spoken, than the. beams and rafters gave way; 
^' that part of the floor, on which the clergy and their friends 
" were arranged, fell v/ith them ; many were killed in the fall, 
" and others grievously hurt ; but the part where Dunstan and 
'' his friends had taken their seats remained firm." 

A more atrocious crime than the charge which you thus 
bring against Dunstan cannot be imagined. Now every canon 
of history, even the common duty of charity, requires that such 
an imputation should not be brought without strong evidence. 
The slightest evidence neither has been, nor can be produced, 
for its support. That a council was held at Calne ;^that, dur- 
ing its sitting, the floor fell in ; that the ecclesiastics, the nobles, 
and the other members who attended it, were cast into the 
ruin ; that several lost their lives, or were materially injured ; 
and that Dunstan remained unhurt by standing on a beam, are 
the only circumstances which history has transmitted to us. 
Of the diabolical contrivance of the tragedy by Dunstan^ no 
proof whatever has been suggested. 



VL] DUNSTAN. 61 

Nothing can be more unfavourable to the memory of Dun- 
stan than your account of hhn. I apprehend that the readers 
of the preceding pages, and still more those, who have perused 
doctor Lingard's account of him, in his Antiquities of the An- 
glo-Saxon Church, and in his History of England, particularly 
if they have consulted the authorities cited by him, in the last 
of these works, have come to a very different conclusion, and 
consider St. Dunstan as an ornament to his religion and his 
country. 



VL 6. 

The Miracles of St. Dunstan, 

You conclude the present chapter with an account of the 
miracles ^'at the death of Dunstan." You thus express your- 
self upon them: "Whether the miracles at the death of St. 
" Dunstan were actually performed by the monks, or only 
" averred by them as having been wrought, either in their own 
" sight, or in that of their predecessors, there is the same frau- 
" dulent purpose, the same audacity of imposture, and the same 
" irrefragable proofs of that system of deceit, which the romish 
" church carried on every where till the time of the Reforma- 
" tion, and still pursues, wherever it retains its temporal power 
" or influence." 

This is a most serious charge : — In reply to it, I beg leave 
to refer you to what 1 have already said on the miracles per- 
formed in the roman-catholic church. I must add, that the pe- 
riod in which the miracles, attributed to Dunstan, were per- 
formed, was the darkest period in the roman-catholic history. 
The nation was then suffering grievously from the effects of 



62 DUNSTAIN'. [Letter 

the Danish ravages. The demolition of monasteries; the 
slaughter of their unoffending inmates, who were the teachers 
and scholars of the times ; the consequential destruction of 
books, and of all public and private memorials of literature and 
art, "had occasioned," to use your own words, "the total loss 
" of learning in the Anglo-Saxon church." 

But the gospel of the Anglo-Saxons still remained, and was 
still read. It informed them of the miracles wrought by Christ ; 
and of his promises, that, until the end of time, his disciples 
should perform similar miracles, and even greater : and they 
knew that the promises of Christ could not fail. Besides, — as 
doctor Lingard justly observes, "Man is taught by human na- 
" ture to attribute any event to a particular cause •, and when 
" an occurrence cannot be explained by the known laws of the 
" universe, it is assigned, by the illiterate in every age, and in 
" every religion, to the operation of an invisible agent. This 
" principle was not extirpated ; it was improved by the kno w- 
" ledge of the gospel. From the doctrine of a superintendant 
" Providence, the Saxon converts were led to conclude, that 
" God would often interfere in human concerns. To him they 
" arcribed every unforeseen and unnatural event; and either 
" trusted in His bounty for visible protection from misfortune, 
" or feared from His justice that vengeance which punishes 
" guilt before the general day of retribution. Men, impressed 
" with this notion, would rather expect the appearance of mi- 
" raculous events. On many occasions, they would be the 
" dupes of their own credulity ; and," (particularly as they had 
the Divine promises, m.entioned by us, in full view,) "ascribe 
" to the beneficence of the Deity, and the intercession of their 
" patrons, those cures which might have been effected by na- 
" ture, or the power of the imagination." Let us add, that, in 
this temper of mind, it was likely that sometimes, like the 



VI.] DUNSTAN. 63 

Northmen, gifted with second sight, they would see what they 
did not see; and hear what they did not hear. 

Do not these observations solve the whole difficulty? Do 
they not account for the abundance of miraculous relations, in 
the time of which we are writing? Do they not render it un- 
necessary, — we had almost said inexcusable, — to account for 
them by imputing fraud, imposture or systematical deceit, as is 
done by you, to the persons concerned in them? "If there was 
" a man," says a writer not*" unknown to you,* " who could 
" truly be called venerable, it is he to whom that appellation is 
" constantly paid, Bede, whose life was past in instructing his 
" own generation, and in preparing records for posterity." Yet, 
on the relations of the venerable Bede, does the truth of a great 
portion of the Anglo-Saxon miracles depend. In the present 
enlightened age, does not our own country abound with super- 
stitions ? Inquire of the village beadles and the village dames. 
Does a week pass without an advertisement in more than one 
of our newspapers of a child's caul ? Is this surpassed by any 
Saxon superstition ? You yourself have recorded the miraculous 
incidents in the life of John Wesley. 

I beg leave to submit the following remark to your consider- 
ation. While you so learnedly, and so eloquently, bring for- 
ward in "the Book of the Church," so much to the supposed 
discredit of the Anglo-Saxon church, should you not have as- 
signed a just proportion, to what you yourself allow, to have 
been eminently praiseworthy and venerable ? Should you not 
have bestowed some pages on the edifying holiness of St. Neot; 
the monastic sanctity and extensive learning of Bredfirth, the 
monk of Ramsay; the extensive learning of Bede; and the 
royal virtues and piety of Alfred ? 

♦Quarterly Review for the month of December, 1811. 



64 DUNSTAN. [Letter VI. 

On themes like these, how much did justice call on you to 
dwell ! But how little do you say upon them ! 

Permit me, before I close this letter, to notice a great, but I 
am sure an unintentional misrepresentation contained in your 
present chapter* You eulogize the primate Theodore, for 
prohibiting divorce for any o ther cause than that which is al- 
lowed by the gospel. Here you evidently allude to the coun- 
cil held at Hereford in 673, at which Theodore presided.^ It 
does not prohibit divorce; but enjoins, that "no one should 
" forsake his wife, unless, as the gospel teaches, for fornica- 
" tion; and that, if any one should have expelled his wife, join- 
" ed to him in lawful matrimony, he should marry no other, but 
" remain as he was, or be reconciled to her." 

*Page 84. f Wilk. Cone. vol. 1, p. 41. 



MONASTIC INSTITUTIONS, 65 



LETTER VII. 

CHARGES AGAINST THE MONKS OF WITHHOLDING KNOW- 
LEDGE, AND OF A DISPOSITION TO IMMODERATE SEVERITY. 
INVESTITURES. ST. ANSELM. 

Sir, 

In this letter I shall consider the principal charges which you 
bring against the roman-catholic church, in the seventh chapter 
of your work. What respects the claim of the popes to tempo- 
ral power, I shall make the subject of a future letter. 



VII. 

Charges against the Monks of zoithholding Knowledge^ and 
of a Disposition to immoderate Severity, 

You begin this chapter by intimating, that, " if St, Dunstan 
^' had been succeeded by similar talents and temper, and Eng- 
'' land had remained undisturbed by invasions, the priesthood 
" might have obtained as complete an ascendancy as in antient 
" Egypt, or in Tibet, founded upon deceit, and upheld by un- 
" communicated knowledge, and immoderate severity." 

I must attribute these expressions to that hurry of composi- 

6* 



66 MONASTIC INSTITUTIONS. [Letter 

lion, which somethnes leads even the ablest writers into inac- 
curacy. If, for a moment, you had looked into the stores of 
your own mind, — and ampler stores few possess, — ^you would 
have seen, that in the middle ages, pope succeeded pope, with 
talents and temper similar to Dunstan's, yet, that, throughout 
the whole of this period, the eternal city, so far from being sub- 
jected to any Egyptian or Tibetian ascendancy of priesthood, 
was the most free, and the most enlightened portion of Christ- 
tendom. 

But, in your account of monkish literature and government, 
how could the words, " uncommunicated knowledge and im- 
" moderate severity," have fallen from your pen ? Were not 
monasteries the only schools ? Was not knowledge most lib- 
erally communicated in them ?* 

As to your charge against the monks, of "immoderate se- 
" verity," I must observe that the passage which I have just 
cited from your work, is the first in which I have found this 
charge, or any thing like it, made or insinuated ; and that, af- 
ter seriously revolving all I have read on monastic transactions, 
I cannot bring to my recollection even a single fact which sup- 
ports it. To the general mildness of their government, M. Mal- 
let, a celebrated protestant historian,]" bears strong testimony. 
" The monks," he says, " softened by their instructions the fe- 
" rocious manners of the people, and opposed their credit to the 
" despotism of the nobility, who knew no other occupation than 
" war, and grievously oppressed their neighbours : on this ac- 
" county the government of the monks was preferred to their ^s, 
" The people sought them for judges ; it ivas an usual sayings 
" that it was better to he governed hy a bishop'^ s crosier^ than 

♦ Historical Memoirs of the English, Irish and Scottish Catholics, c. 
xvi. s. 2. 

t Histoire de Suisses ou Helvetiens, tome 1, p. 105. 



VII.] MONASTIC LEARNING. 67 

'' a monarcWs sceptre.'^'' — I wish you to consider this passage ; 
and, what is more important, to reflect, what your own exten- 
sive reading must suggest to you upon the subject. Surely you 
will then think that there is no foundation for your charge. 
Have I not brought, in my " Historical Memoirs," ample testi- 
mony to the services rendered by the monks to education and 
literature ? 

One reflection permit me to suggest to you. No one knows 
better than yourself the impediments which existed, in the mid- 
dle ages, to the expansion of genius, and the acquisition of 
knowledge. Supposing that you had lived in that period, with 
all the mental endowments which you have received from na- 
ture, is it quite certain that you would have possessed a better 
or purer religion ; more literary merit, or greater consistency, 
than the best men or best writers of those times ? That you 
would have excelled Anselm., in holii>ess ; Bede, in agiogra- 
phy ; the author of the Alexandreis, — (to whom we owe the 
celebrated line, 

" Incidis in Soy Ham, cupiens evitare Charybdim,") 

in poetry ; Thomas Aquinas, in theology ; Matthew Paris, or 
Matthew of Westminster, in history ; or Roger Bacon, in philos- 
ophy ? — ^Respect yourself then in those, whom you might have 
resembled, if you had lived in their inauspicious ages ; and show 
that blindness to their faults, and that kindness to their virtues, 
to which, if you had lived in their tim.es, you would have been 
entitled from ours. Without their preservation of the language 
and writings of Greece and Rome, and, (what is of greater con- 
sequwice,) without their transmission to you of the sacred writ- 
ings, which contain the sacred word of God, you would not 
have been what you are. Which is it most fitting they should 
recdive from you, — gratitude or sarcasm ? 



68 INVESTITURES. Letter 

VII. 2. 
Investitures, 

In considering the unhappy contests in the middle ages, be- 
tween the popes and the sovereigns, on the subject of investi- 
tures, Vfe shall find ample ground for repelling the undistin- 
guishing and unqualified censure, v^hich the conduct of the 
former has received from modern writers. 

It gives me pleasure to find you are not to be classed among 
these. In the chapter under consideration, you often do jus- 
tice to the pope : some things however in it call for observa- 
tion. 

You are aware, that, in the early ages of the church, bishops 
were elected at a congregation of the clergy and laity of the 
diocese; that one, or more, of the neighbouring bishops pre- 
sided at the election ; that the whole congregation joined in it; 
that the bishop consecrated; that, from the reign of Constantino 
the Great, the body of the people began to be wholly excluded; 
that the bishops and clergy retained their influence ; that it in- 
sensibly declined, so that the monarchs usurped to themselves 
the exclusive rights of nominating to vacant sees ; that this was 
very injurious to the interests of religion, as the motives of 
their nomination were seldom pure ; that Charlemagne, and 
his successors, endowed the bishoprics with ample territorial 
possessions ; and that, while they were vacant, the monarchs 
claimed a right to receive the profits of them for their benefit, 
and on this account frequently delayed to fill them up. It ap- 
pears from the records of the Exchequer, that Henry I. of Eng- 
land, in the sixteenth year of his reign, had in his hands one 
archbishopric, fiYQ bishoprics, and three abbeys ; in the nine- 



VIL] INVESTITURES 69 

teenth, one archbishopric, five bishoprics, and six abbeys ; and, 
in the thirty-first, one archbishopric, six bishoprics, and seven 
abbeys."^ You must be sensible that this was an intolerable 
grievance ; but it did not rest here : The monarchs often sold 
their right of nomination to the vacant sees ; and thus, to use 
your oyvn words, " simony became the characteristic sin of the 
age." 

When the vacancy was immoderately protracted, the popes 
often threatened to appoint to the see, without waiting for the 
king's nomination ; and som.etnnes carried their threats into ex- 
ecution. To prevent it, the monarchs required, that, on the 
death or removal of every bkhop, his ring and crosier should 
be transmitted to him. On the appointment of the bishop's 
successor, the monarch delivered the emblems to him. The 
bishops did homage and fealty ; and then placed the ring and 
crosier in the hands of the metropolitan, and received them back 
from him. 

In this ceremonial, three things gave offence to the popes : 
1st, they contended, that the monarch's nomination to the va- 
cant see was an usurpation of the rights of the clergy, to whom 
alone, both by the constitution of the church, and the length of 
usage, it justly belonged : 2ndly, that the delivery of the ring 
and crosier, the acknowledged emblems of episcopal jurisdic- 
tion, — was a spiritual ceremony, which it was a sacrilege in a 
layman to perform ; that even, if this could be explained away, 
it facilitated the simoniacal traffic of benefices : and, 3rdly, that 
ecclesiastics, on account of their sacred character, ought to be 
exempted from doing homage and fealty, — or, at least, from the 
obligation of personal service in war, which was attached to 
them. 

Permit me to ask, if the popes were not founded in all these 

*Lingard, vol. 2, p. 65 ; he cites Madox, 209—212. 



70 ANSELM. [Letter 

objections, that only excepted which sought, on account of their 
supposed sanctity of character, to exempt the clergy from ho- 
mage and fealty ? So much was this the case, that in every state 
in Europe the contest was settled, by allowing the greater part 
of the papal claims. The right of electing the bishops was ap- 
propriated and confirmed to the clergy. It was provided, that 
the bishops should be invested with their temporalties, by de- 
livering the sceptre ; and that personal military service should 
not be required from them. 

Thus we find, that, on the merits, — ^you must excuse a law- 
yer using this word, — the popes were right on most points of 
the case ; and that their main object in asserting their claims 
was generally commendable. So far as they resorted to tem- 
poral means for establishing them, then they were completely 
wrong. So far as they resorted to spiritual means, they acted 
within theit proper sphere. But, in the use of these means, 
were they always right } "Where much is done," says doctor 
Johnson, " something wrong will always be found." 

You present us with an homely likeness of St. Anselm. 
You cannot call in question his piety, his zeal, his disinterest- 
edness, the beauty of his genius, his firmness, or his learning. 
You acknowledge that a surprising revival of literature had 
been effected by him, and Lanfranc his immediate predecessor. 
You blame him, how^ever, for the part which he took in the dis- 
pute on investitures. But, according to the principles univer- 
sally received in his time, was he not always in the right .^ and 
even, according to the received opinions of our times, was he 
much in the wrong } You do not sufficiently notice, that the 
dispute between him and the king turned on other matters be- 
sides investitures *, — on the long vacancy of sees and benefices ; 
on the king's appropriating the profits of them to his own use ; 
on his exactions and simoniacal sales. On each of these heads 



VII.] ANSELM. 71 

was not Anselm justifiable ? You do not give him the praise 
he merits, for his conduct between Henry I. and Robert. Per- 
mit me to request you to peruse doctor Gibson's celebrated 
preface to his Codex Juris Ecclesiastici ; and then say whether 
that prelate, and all the prelates of his high school, would not, 
if they had lived in the times of Anselm, have thought it their 
duty to act, in a great measure, like him ? 



72 BECKET. [Letter 



LETTER Vm. 



IMMUNITIES OP THE CHURCH ST. THOMAS A BECKET. 



Sir, 

You dedicate a great part of your eighth chapter to the con- 
test between Henry 11. and the celebrated Thomas a Becket, 
archbishop of Canterbury, whom the church of Rome numbers 
among her saints. You try him by the present constitution, 
the present laws, and the present manners of christian states, 
and by the present notions of what is fit and proper, and you 
pronounce him guilty. But is it not by the constitutions, the 
laws, the customs, the manners, and the notions of his own time, 
that he should be tried ? To pronounce a fair judgment on 
him, should we not transport ourselves to the middle of the 
twelfth century, and to the circumstances of the world at that 
period ? If we did so, should we not find that the clerical im- 
munities, upon which the contest in its first stage wholly turn- 
ed, founded a part of the constitution of every christian state, 
and of England not less than any other } That they had been 
both granted and confirned to the church by wise and great 
princes } That from the time in which they date their exist- 
ence, until many centuries after the sera of which we are speak- 
ing, they had been observed and respected by the good } And 

J 



VIII.] BECKET. 73 

that they had nevet been infringed by any whose name history 
has handed down to us with honour ? Taking all these cir- 
cumstances into consideration, can we justly blame the illustri- 
ous prelate for Kfs^vigorous and resolute defence of rights, which 
most certainly, in his time^ made a part of the law of England, 
and were an acknowledged bulwark of the English constitu- 
tion ? Had this eminent man submitted to the monarch in the 
contest in which they had engaged, what guard against the roy- 
al abuse of power could have been maintained ? You and I 
have read with delight, what the most eloquent man of our 
times has said and written of the spoliation of the Galilean 
clergy, and his verified predictions of its disastrous result. Had 
any observer, equally profound and gifted, lived in the days of 
Becket, would he not have predicted a result equally disastrous, 
if Henry's aggressions had been crowned with success ? Let 
us listen to Montesquieu : " I am not," says that great man, 
^' violently in love wdth the privileges of the clergy ; but I wish 
'' that their jurisdiction should once be well established. After 
" that, the question is not, whether it was right so to establish 
^' it, but whether it is established ; whether it makes part of the 
^' laws of the land ; and w^hether it is connected with them 
^' throughout ? As much as the power of the church is dan- 
^' gerous in a republic, so much it is useful in a monarchy, par- 
^' ticularly in those which tend to despotism. Where would 
" Spain and Portugal be, since the loss of their laws, without 
^' this power, — the only check on arbitrary sway ?" 

Now, all history informs us, that long before the commence- 
ment of this celebrated contest the immunities of the clergy 
had been established, and become part of the law of England. 
Does not this decide the question ? Must we not conclude, on 
the principles of Montesquieu, that the monarch's attack upon 
7 



74 BECKET. [Letter 

them was altogether wrong ? That Becket, in defending them, 
was altogether right ? 

You notice the observations which Becket, when he was so- 
licited to accept the see of Canterbury, is related to have made, 
both to the monarch and to his confidential friends, — that " he 
" foresaw that, if he should be raised to the see of Canterbury, 
" he must either lose the favour of the king, or sacrifice to it 
" the service of his God. But this," you inform us, "was 
"said to the monarch with a smile, so that, whether intention- 
" ally or not, it conveyed a meaning which invalidated the 
" words." May I ask from what author you took this account 
of Becket's smile ? or the inference you drav/ from it ? Was 
not Becket's expression a fair and honourable notice to the 
monarch, that he was not to depend on the connivance of the 
archbishop in the iliaudable practices in which he had already 
too much indulged ? 

You also notice the change in Becket's manners, which im- 
mediately followed his consecration ; and you ridicule his pen- 
itential austerities. Are you not sensible that, in every part of 
the globe, in which Christianity has been received, similar aus- 
terities have been practised by the wisest, the noblest, and the 
best of men ! The examples of these men you may think of 
no consequence : but what do you say to the high commenda- 
tions of penitential fastings, with which the most eminent lights 
of your own church — your own Patricks, your own Beveridges, 
your own Gunnings, your own book of Common Prayer, and 
your own homilies, abound ? They are so sti'ongly expressed, 
that, if we should strike a balance between the fasts which 
they recommend, and those which the archbishop practised, 
the preponderance, if any, in favour of the archbishop, would 
not be very considerable. Where is the difference between 
fasts and other austerities ? 



VIIL] BECKET. 75 

You do not admire his voluntary resignation of the office of 
chancellor; but was it not an act of duty ? You blame him 
for instituting proceedings for the recovery of the lands belong- 
ing to his see ; was not this, too, an act of duty ? Whose me- 
mory should the present prelacy of the established church of 
England most respect,— the memory of Becket, who preserved 
the possessions of his see *, or the memory of those prelates, so 
eloquently praised by you in a further part of your work, who, 
in the reigns of Edward VI. and Elizabeth, so liberally compli- 
mented away large portions of them to their sovereign ? 

But the character of the archbishop is little affected by these 
incidental inquiries. It rests ^n his conduct at the convention 
at Clarendon ; and on the events which produced his murder. 
The foraier we may consider as the first, the latter as the last 
stage of the controversy between him and his royal master. 

The monarch contended that the clergy should, in future, be 
tried for felonies in his courts of justice. To obtain a recog- 
nition of this claim, he summoned all the prelates of England 
to Westminster ; and required them to acknowledge the right 
of his courts to try the clergy. They hesitated. He then ask- 
ed, whether they would promise to abide by the antient law of 
the realm } The archbishop, speaking for himself, and for the 
other prelates present, replied, that " they were willing to be 
" bound by the antient law of the realm, as far as the honour of 
" God, and the church, and the privileges of their order, per- 
" mitted." The king required the omission of the saving 
words: the archbishop insisted on the retention of them. At 
first, the other prelates adhered to him ; but the king brought 
them over : and, after much solicitation, the archbishop acqui- 
esced. The monarch, to render the assent of the prelates to 
his claims the more solemn, summoned the convention of the 



76 BECKET. [Letter 

spiritual and temporal lords of his kingdom to Clarendon, near 
Salisbury, When they met, the archbishop expressed a wish 
that the saving words should be retained. He consented, how- 
ever, afterwards to the omission of them ; requiring, at the 
same time, that the customs should be defined. This was both 
prudent and honourable ; for, while the customs should remain 
undefined, the dispute would invariably continue. Thus there 
could be no reasonable objection to the request of the prelate. 
It was acceded to by the king ] and a specification of the cus- 
toms was accordingly drawn up by a committee, appointed by 
the convention. It was exhibited in sixteen articles, called by 
the historians of the times " Th% Constitutions of Clarendon:" 

This brings us to the point : — Did the constitutions exhibit 
the antient customs of the realm ? If they did, the archbish- 
op and the other prelates were bound, by their promise, to re- 
cognize and observe them. If they did not, the archbishop and 
the other prelates were bound to neither ; nor could they ac- 
knowledge that the constitutions expressed the antient customs 
of the realm, or bind themselves to the observance of theiti, as 
such, without incurring the guilt, both of a solemn untruth, and 
of treason to the constitution. 

On this point, therefore, the whole question on the conduct 
of the archbishop, at the convention at Clarendon, rests alto- 
gether. Does it require much investigation to arrive at a pro- 
per conclusion upon it ? 

By one of the articles, the custody and revenues of the*tem- 
poralities of every archbishopric, bishopric, abbey, or priory of 
royal foundation, was declared to belong, during its vacancy, to 
the king: this was an absolute innovation. 

By another, it was provided, that civil and criminal suits, 
though each or either party to them were a clergyman, should 
commence in the royal courts ; that the justices should decide 



VIIL] BECKET. 77 

whether they ought to be determined there, or in the ecclesias- 
tical courts ; that, in the latter case, a civil officer should attend 
the trial, and report of the proceedings ; and that, if the person 
accused should be convicted, he should forfeit the privileges of 
his character, and receive judgment accordingly. All this was 
perhaps, very proper ; but all was contrary to the existing law. 

Another article declared, that tenants in chief should not be 
excommunicated without the leave of the king ; or, in his ab- 
sence, of his judiciary. This was in opposition to the law of 
Christ ; and to the law of every christian country. It is even 
contrary to the present law of England, and to the practice of 
its courts. 

Another article forbade appeals to Rome. At this period of 
our history appeals were allowed in England, and in every oth- 
er part of the christian world. It is observable, that the mon- 
arch himself, during the contest, appealed more than once to 
the roman see. 

Such being the state of the contest, in this stage of it, per- 
mit me to say, that it is, with something more than surprise, 
that I read in your work the following lines : " If these consti- 
" tutions were in direct opposition to the system of Hildebrand 
" and his successors, and at once removed all those encroach- 
" ments which the hierarchy had made in this kingdom during 
" Stephen's contested reign, it should be remembered that they 
" were not neio edicts^ enacted in a spirit of hostility to the 
" churchy hut a declaration and recognition of the existing 
" law:' 

By this, I understand you to affirm, that, as the law of Eng- 
gland existed in the reign of Henry 11.^ it allowed the monarch 
to retain the profits of vacant sees for his own benefit ; it al- 
lowed the clergy to be tried for petit treason, and less crimes 
in temporal courts ; it exempted tenants in chief from being 
7* 



78 BECKET. [Letter 

excommunicated ; and it inhibited appeals to Rome. Can any 
of these positions be supported ? — In my humble opinion they 
cannot. 

Doctor Lingard* thinks with me ; and so does our common 
friend, Mr. Sharon Turner. " In justice to Becket," says that 
learned and discriminating writer, "it must be admitted that 
" these famous articles completely changed the legal and civil 
" state of the clergy ; and were an actual subversion, as far as 
" they went, of the papal policy, so boldly introduced by Gre- 
" gory VII. -,"1 — and then completely received into the civil 
and ecclesiastical polity and jurisdiction of every European 
state. 

We now reach the second stage of this important controver- 
sy. A detail of the incidents is foreign to the subject of this 
letter. It is sufficient to mention succinctly, that, after many 
fruitless endeavours, a reconciliation between the archbishop 
and the sovereign took place at Freitville, in Normandy; that 
the archbishop returned to England ; that, upon a complaint by 
him against the prelates, who had assisted at the coronation of 
prince Henry, the celebration of which ceremony belonged of 
right to the see of Canterbury, the pope excommunicated the 
bishops of London, Rochester and Salisbury ; conferring, at 
the same time, a power in the archbishop to absolve them ; 
that, on his refusal, they attended in person on the king, who 
was then in Normandy , to make their complaints against the 
archbishop ; that, irritated by their representations, the king ex- 
claimed, " Of the cowards who eat my bread, is there not one 
" who will free me from this turbulent priest ?" That four 
knights, who heard this exclamation, bound themselves by 
oath to avenge the king ; that they sailed for England, and pro- 
ceeded to Canterbury, entered the cathedral, and, advancing to 

* History of England, vol. 2, p. 64, 65, 66. 
flbid. vol. l,p. 213. 



VIII.] BECKET. 79 

the archbishop, required him instantly to absolve the bishops ; 
that he refused to absolve them till they made satisfaction ; 
that, on his refusal, the four knights murdered him ; that, as 
soon as the king was informed of it, he solemnly denied all 
participation in the guilt ; but admitted the unguarded excla- 
mation upon which the knights proceeded to the perpetration 
of the crime ; and, on this account, submitted to a public and 
humiliating penance; and was absolved by the pope. Pre- 
viously to it, he solemnly abrogated all the unlawful customs, 
which had been introduced into his states, and forbade their 
being observed in future. 

Thus Becket perished for a faithful adherence to ecclesiasti- 
cal duty. The pope himself had excommunicated the three 
prelates. Now, the canons of the church require, that, when 
excommunication has been issued, it shall not be taken off un- 
til the party proves his innocence, or makes his submission : 
even now this is English law. As the case then stood, the 
fact, for which the prelates had been excommunicated, was un- 
deniable, and the prelates had made no submission. Becket, 
therefore, had no authority to remove the excommunication ; 
he would have incurred irregularity by doing it, and thus have, 
himself, become liable to the censures of the church : hence, he 
refused, and braved, by his refusal, a cruel death. His conduct 
was admired and applauded by the whole world. You must be 
aware, that the liberties, confirmed to the church by Magna 
Charta^ included equally those rights for which Becket con- 
tended at Clarendon, and those for which he was murdered at 
Canterbury. 

Some candid protestants have done justice to his memory : 
Collier's account of the controversy between him and his sov- 
ereign * deserves a serious perusal. 

* Ecclesiastical History, vol. 3. p. 343—347. 



80 BECKET. [Letter Vili. 

With one further observation I must trouble you. JVo ro- 
man-catholic imagines^ at iJds time^ that the ecclesiastics were 
entitled^ ly divine right^ to theimmunity^ for which Becket con- 
tended^ in the fir St stage of the controversy. All agree, that the 
only real title to it is by grant from the state, or by immemorial 
usage, in which a grant is always pre-supposed. Now, such a 
grant might have teen made on grounds, both of wisdom and 
sound policy. The rules of the gospel are equally calculated to 
produce obedience to the laws, as to form individuals to virtue 
and holiness ; it is, therefore, the duty of the state to promote 
whatever has a tendency to make the gospel respected. Expe- 
ence shows, that respect for the gospel exists seldom, without 
respect for its ministers ; there mighty therefore, be good sense 
to keep their occasional scandals from the public eye, and, for 
this purpose, to confine the investigation of them to the eccle- 
siastical tribunals of the realm : some individuals might, by this 
arrangement, escape punishment ; but the legislature might have 
been wise in considering, that although this would be mischie- 
vous, exposure would be a greater mischief. 



KING JOHN. 81 



LETTER IX. 

I. CESSION BY KING JOHN OF THE SOVEREIGNTY OF ENG- 
LAND TO POPE INNOCENT III. II. TEMPORAL POWER OF 

THE POPE. 

Sir, 

I HAVE now reached your ninth chapter ; it turns chiefly 
on the pope's exercise of temporal power. In the present state 
of the controversy between the protestants and roman-catholics 
of this realm, it is the most important chapter of your work. I 
shall premise my discussion of it, by some observations on 
your account of the transactions between the pope and king 
John. 



IX. 1. 

Cession hy King John of the Sovereignty of England to 
Pope Innocent III. 

It is usually supposed, that John absolutely divested him- 
self of the sovereignty of the kingdom, and transferred it to 
Innocent. This was not the fact : the monarch retained his 
sovereignty, but agreed, that he and his successors should hold 



Bt KING JOHN. [Letter 

it from the pope and his successors in fee simple, by homage 
and fealty, and by the annual render of 10,000 marks. The 
consequence was, that, in respect to his subjects, and their 
rights, John continued in the possession of the same regalities, 
and subject to the same obligations, as before; for, in all cases 
of lord, vassal, and sub-vassal, the lord had no direct right over 
the sub-vassal, or any direct estate or interest in his territory. 
The lord's right and interest consisted in this, that if the vas- 
sal neglected to perform the services, or pay the rent incident 
to his tenure, the territory was subject to the lord's remedy 
for enforcing them, and liable, in some instances, to be forfeit- 
ed. When this happened, the vassalage was extinguished; 
and the sub-vassal became, from that time, chief or immediate 
tenant to the lord. It is the same, at the present time, with 
respect to a manor, which the lord of it holds of the lord of 
another manor. If the intermediate lord neglects to pay his 
rent, or to perform his service, the superior lord may enforce 
them by distress, and, in some cases, by seizing the interme- 
diate manor for forfeiture. When the forfeiture takes place, 
the lordship of the intermediate manor ceases, and the tenants 
of it become actual or immediate tenants of the superior lord. 
It may be added, that, at the time to which the subject of these 
letters has led us, there scarcely was, in Christendom, a sove- 
reign who was not possessed of territories, for which he was a 
vassal, either to some other sovereign, or to the subject of ano- 
ther sovereign. 

Still, if the transaction had rested here, both the monarch and 
the pontiff would have been inexcusable, as the former had no 
right to confer, or the latter to receive, the ultimate feudal supe- 
riority created by the arrangement. 

j. But it may be observed, in justification both of the monarch 
and the pontiff, that the prelates, barons, and knights of the 



IX.] THE POPE'S, &c. 83 

realm, were parties to the transaction, and concurred in it. You 
yourself inform us, that all parties had alternately appealed to 
the pope. The ignominious ceremony was performed in their 
presence, and without even a murmur of disapprobation : it 
may be added, that it took place under a national apprehension 
of a French invasion ; and it is not a little remarkable, that the 
barons, soon afterwards, transferred their allegiance to Lewis, 
the son of the French m.onarch, then at the head of the invad- 
ing army. Considering all these circumstances, you will pro- 
bably think with me, that the transaction has not been fairly 
represented by the generality of our historians ; that the pontiff 
shares the blame with the king, and his spiritual and temporal 
lords ; and that he was less blameable than either. 



IX. 2. 

Temporal Power of the Pope. 

From an humble fisherman, the pope successively became 
owner of houses and lands,, acquired the power of magistracy 
in Rome, and large territorial possessions in Italy, Dalmatia, 
Sicily, Sardinia, France and Africa, and ultimately obtained the 
rank and consequence of a great temporal prince. 

Here the pope did not stop; but claimed, by divine gift, a 
right to exercise supreme temporal power over all christian so- 
vereigns, when a great good of religion required it. This claim 
was unfounded ; both the gospel and tradition declared against 
it, and it produced great evil. 
But let us be just: 

1. In theory, the utility of such a power maybe imagined. 
'^ The interests of human kind," says Voltaire, '' requires a curb 



84 THE POPE'S [Letter 

" to withhold sovereigns, and to protect the lives of their sub- 
"jects. By a general convention this curb might havq been 
"^ plaqed in the hands of the popes. These supreme pontiffs,— 
" by interfering in temporal quarrels, for no purpose but appeas- 
'' ing them ; by representing to sovereigns and subjects their 
" respective duties ; by reproving their crimes, and reserving 
" excommunications for great enormities, — might have been 
" regarded as gods upon earth. But men are reduced to have 
" no other defence than the laws and manners of their country. 
" laws often despised, and manners often corrupt." 

In the middle ages there was often no such available law ; 
some curb was, therefore, necessary, and it could not be plac- 
ed in better hands than in those of the pope. 

2. '' By universal conventions'^'' says Voltaire,* "it might 
" have been placed in his hands." No such univeral conven- 
; tion was entered into at any specific time; but, from the re- 
' peated acknowledgment of the sovereigns of almost every 
christian state, may it not be plausibly contended that such 
a convention was tacitly established ? " Unhappily," says Vol- 
taire,! " almost all the sovereigns, by an inconceivable blind- 
" ness, laboured to give it credit in public opinion, as a weapon 
" which depended for its power, on public opinion only. When 
" it was levelled at one of their rivals, or their enemies, they 
" not only approved but solicited it ; and by their undertaking 
" to execute a sentence, which deprived a sovereign of his 
^ state, they subjected their own to the usurped jurisdiction." 
In confirmation of this observation of Voltaire, we may men- 
tion, that when the pope excommunicated Philip Augustus of 
France, for marrying a woman during the life of his first wife, 
he charged the pope with insolence, and an abuse of power ; 

♦Essai sur l*Hist. Gen. torn. 2, c. 49. 
t Lettres sur I'Historie, torn. 2. lett. 2, 4. 



IX.] TEMPORAL POWER. 85 

but when the pope conferred the kingdom of England upon 
Phillip, and his heirs, he never observed to any one, that the 
pope had no right to dispose of kingdoms. At the league of 
Cambray, the kings of France and Spain recognized the pope's 
power of excommunication ; and stipulated, that he should sub- 
ject Venice to an interdict, if she did not comply with their de- 
mands within a given time. It is not a little remarkable, that, , 
so lately as the sixteenth century, Henry VII., than whom no 
monarch was more jealous of his prerogative, or better ac- 
quainted with it, applied to pope Innocent for a confirmation of 
his title to the crown. Lord Bacon cites the bull by which it I 
was granted. 

I repeat, that the claim was fantastic. But who were most 
blameable, — the popes, who made the claim, or the sovereigns, 
who acknowledged it ? The latter were silly ; worldly wisdom 
could not blame the former. 

3. It must be admitted, that the popes, by insisting upon ;. 
their claims, sometimes produced good. The action and reac- 
tion of the pope's aggression, and the monarch's resistance, 
gave to each the locus penitentice^ the hour of reflection, and 
brought both to moderate councils : this proved, in the result, 
advantageous, both to the religious and civil interests of the 
people. 

4. It must also be admitted, that, in these contests, the cler- y^ 
gy generally supported the monarch ; and that, on other occa- 
sions, they resisted the undue exertion of papal prerogative. 

I 5. In most respects, the popes appear to advantage, both in 
their sacerdotal and their regal capacities. That a few, in fhe 
long list were stained by vice, is not denied ; or that others ex- 
hibited the workings of those passions, which too often accom- 
pany the possession of power. But can it be said, that, even 
in the times of the greatest darkness, the roman pontiffs were 
8 



86 THE POE'S [Letter 

not generally distinguished by superior virtue and superior ac- 
quirements ? Collectively taken, let them be compared with 
their contemporary princes in every age, and, most assuredly, 
they w^ill not suffer in the comparison. 

Voltaire observes, that, in the dark ages, there was less of 
barbarism and ignorance, in the dominions of the popes, than 
in any other European state. Much, unquestionably, was done 
by them, in every portion of Christendom, to dispel ignorance, 
to spread the faith and morality of the gospel, to protect the 
lower ranks against their oppressors, to preserve peace among 
princes, and to alleviate the general calamity of the times. Their 
exertions, during the middle ages, to compel the monarchs of 
Europe to respect the sanctity of marriage, have not been suf- 
ficiently observed. Had it not been for these, royal inconti- 
nence, even of the worst kind, would probably have become 
common, and might perhaps have been generally imitated. 

Persecuted and plundered in England, France, Spain, Ger- 
many, and every other European state, the Jews were uniformly 
protected by the popes. Great exertions were made by them for 
the redemption of captives, and the amelioration of the condi- 
tion of the slaves: in 1167, pope Alexander HI. solemnly de- 
clared in council, that all christians ought to be exempt from 
slavery. The popes were always in favour with the lower 
classes : a certain sign of the protection which that portion of 
the community received from them. Mr. Sharon Turner ob- 
serves,* " that no tyranny," (I wish he had used another word,) 
" was ever established, that was more unequivocally the crea- 
" ture of popular will ; nor longer maintained by popular sup- 
" port" : And that, " in no point, did personal interest and pub- 
'' lie welfare more unite, than in the encouragement of monas- 

♦ History of England, vol. 2, p. 332, 361. 



IX.] TEMPORAL POWER. 87 

" teries." Nothing contributed more to elevate the third es- 
tate into notice, or give it importance, than the assistance which 
the Italian republics, in their contests with the emperors, re- 
ceived from the popes. Their exertions for the conversion of 
infidels were unremitted. Few nations can read the history of 
the introduction of Christianity among their ancestors, without 
beinof sensible of their oblio^ations to the tiara. 

Writing to a gentleman of your erudition, I have less hesita- 
tion in expressing myself in the manner I have done, than I 
should have otherwise. No one knows better than yourself, 
that, whatever advocates for the pope's temporal power may 
have existed formerly, no advocate for it can be found now. It 
is rejected in the Galilean declaration of 1682, which was sign- 
ed by every ecclesiastic, secular or religious, in France. All 
the English, Irish and Scottish catholics have disclaimed it up- 
on oath. Perhaps it never was quite so hideous as it has been 
represented ; but, 

" Peace to the strepent horn." 

Shenstone. 



88 ROMAN-CATHOLIC SYSTEM. [Letter 



LETTER X. 

view of the roman-catholic system. 

Sir, 

The title which you give to the chapter of your work, 
which I have now to consider, is, " View of the Papal Sys- 
" tern :" The words popery^ papal and papist being particu- 
larly offensive to roman-catholics, I have altered it by substi- 
tuting the word " roman-catholic" for the word " papal." In 
the oath, which the legislature has prescribed to us, we are 
styled "roman-catholics." On this account it has always been 
a rule with me, to denote, in my publications, the religious de- 
nomination of christians to which 1 belong, by the appellation 
of " roman-catholics_" 

Under the numerous heads of, — L Devotion to the Virgin 
Mary, the saints and angels, and respect to the cross, and the 
relics of the saints : — IL Purgatory, and prayers for the dead : 
— in. Auricular confession and indulgences : — IV. St. Augus- 
tine and Pelagius : — V. Transubstantiation : — And VI. The 
authority of the pope : — 1 shall take successively into consi- 
deration, the principal subjects upon which you criminate the 
roman-catholics in your tenth chapter. A controversial discus - 
sion of any of these topics would be misplaced in this publica- 



X.] DEVOTION TO SAINTS. 89 

tion. All that I shall attempt will be, to state, in the shortest 
manner possible, the doctrine of the roman-catholic church on 
these different heads, accompanying them with short remarks. 
I shall close my letter with some general observations. 



X. 1. 

Devotion to the Virgin Mary^ the Saints^ — respect to the Cross^ 
and' to the Relics of the Saints, 

1. " The saints^ reigning with Christ, offer up their prayers 
" to God for man. It is a good and useful supplication to in- 
" voke them ; and to have recourse to their prayers, help and 
" assistance to obtain favours from God, through his Son Jesus 
" Christ our Lord, above, who is our Redeemer and Saviour." 
This is the decree of the council of Trent.* — The catechism, 
published in pursuance of its decrees, teaches, that " God and 
" the saints are not to be prayed to in the same manner; for 
" we pray to God that He himself would give us good things, 
" and deliver us from evil things : but we beg of the saints, be- 
" cause they are pleasing to God, that they would be our advo- 
'• cates, and obtain from God what we stand in need of."| Con- 
sult Bossuet's Exposition of Faith^ under this article; read 
the catechisms^ which we successively put into the hands of 
children, youth, and persons grown up : examine all our wri- 
ters^ either profound or popular, you will meet with the same 
doctrine. Open our prayer books^ you will find, that, when we 
address God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Ghost, or 
the Holy Trinity, we say to them, " Have mercy on us ;" and 

* Sess. XXV. de Invocatione Sanctorum, 
■f Part iv. Quis Orandus. 

8* 



90 DEVOTION TO SAINTS. [Letter 

that, when we address the blessed Vii-gin, the saints, or the 
angels, — the descent is infinite, — and we say to them, " Pray 
for us?^ 

What do we think of those, who give to the Virgin Mary, to 
the saints, or to the angels, the honour due to God ? Open Mr. 
Gother^s ''Papist Misrepresented^'''^ abridged by doctor Chal- 
loner,- — the editions of which abridgment are countless, — you 
will find in them these strong expressions : " Cursed is he that 
" believes the saints in heaven to be his redeemers ; that prays 
" to them as such ; or that gives God's honour to them, or to 
" any creature whatsoever. Amen." — " Cursed is every god- 
'' dess-worshipper, that believes the blessed Virgin Mary to be 
'' any more than a creature \ that worships her, or puts his trust 
'' in her, more than in God ; that believes she is above her Son, 
" or that she can, in any thing, command Him. Amen." 

Does not the Greek church ; do not all the other churches, 
which separated from the church of Rome, before the Refor- 
mation, invoke the Virgin Mary, the other saints, and the an- 
gels ? Does not Martm Luther* exclaim, "Who can deny that 
" God works great miracles at the tombs of the saints ? I there^ 
'• fore, with the whole catholic church, hold, that the saints are 
'^ to be honoured and invoked by us. Let no one omit to call 
" upon the blessed Virgin, the angels and saints, that they may 
" intercede for them at the hour of death." Do not several dis- 
tinguished divines of your church maintain the same doctrine ? 
Is it not approved by Leibniz ?t Finally, does not doctor Thorn- 
dikej w^rn his brethren "not to lead people by the nose to be- 

*In his letters to Spalatinus, and his treatise de Purgatione quorun- 
dem, and in his Preparatio ad Mortem. 

t Exposition de la Systeme de Leibniz sur la Religion. Paris, 8vo. 
1819, p. 161. 

X Just Weights and Measures, p. 10. 



X.] THE CROSS— RELICS. 91 

" lieve, that they can prove papists to be idolators, when they 
'^ cannot." 

Then permit me to ask, whether the authorities which I 
have cited, do not give a true and clear exposition of the doc- 
trine of the catholic church, upon this important subject? — 
Whether the doctrine be idolatrous or superstitious ? — Whether 
the practice of it do not fill the mind with soothing reflections ? 
With thoughts that increase charity and animate piety ? You 
cannot find a virtuous catholic, who will not own to you, that 
he considers the hours, thus spent by him, to be among the 
most pleasing of his life. 

2. Pursuing the same method, in respect to the cross^ and 
relics of the saints^ I shall transcribe the decree of the council 
of Trent upon them : "Although the images of Christ, the Vir- 
" gin Mother of God, and the other saints, are to be kept aiid 
" retained, particularly in churches, and due honour and vener- 
" ation paid to them, yet we are not to believe, that there is any 
" divinity or power in them, for which we respect them, or that 
" any thing is to be asked from them, or that trust is to be placed 
" in them, as the heathens of old trusted in their idols." Con- 
sult all the authors mentioned in the former part of this letter, 
you will find the same language. Open our catechisms^ you 
will find it asked, " May we pray to relics or images ?" You 
will find it answered, "No, by no means, for they have no life 
" or sense to hear or help us." Then, open Gotherh " Papist 
" Misrepresented^'^^ you will read, " Cursed is he that commits 
" idolatr}^, that prays to images or relics, or worships them for 
" God." 

Such is the doctrine of the catholic church, on those subjects. 

3. We venerate the cross^ as a memorial of the passion and 
death of the Author of our salvation. We venerate the images^ 
paintings^ and relics^ of the saints, as memorials, that bring 



92 PURGATORY. [Letter 

their virtues and rewards to our minds and hearts. We also 
venerate their relics, as portions of their holy bodies, virhich will 
be glorified through all eternity. 

In all this, can you find out any thing reprehensible ? 



X. 2. 

Purgatory and Prayers for the Bead. 

As I am not writing a work of controversy, I shall say little 
on the articles in your present chapter which remain to be dis- 
cussed. 

1. As to the existence of purgatory^ for the belief of which 
the roman-catholics have been so often and so harshly re- 
viled, — Do not all, who call themselves "rational pro testants," 
think with us, that, (to use the language of doctor Johnson,) 
" the generality of mankind are neither so obstinately wicked, 
" as to deserve everlasting punishment; nor so good, as to 
^' merit being admitted into the society of the blessed spirits ; 
" and that God is, therefore, generously pleased to allow 'a 
" middle state, where they may be purified by a certain degree 
'^ of sufifering." With those who profess this doctrine, does not 
your own opinion accord ? 

JIs to 'prayers for the dead. The council of Trent* has de- 
creed, "that there is a purgatory, and that the souls detained 
" in it are helped by the suffrages of the faithful." 

The nature and extent of these suffiages are thus explained 
by St. Augustine :| "When the sacrifice of the altar, or alms, 
^' are offered for the dead, then, in regard to those whose lives 
^' were very good, such sacrifices may be deemed acts of 

* Sess. XXV. Decretum de Purgatione, p. 286. 
jEnchird, c xc. torn, 2, p. 83. 



:.] CONFESSION. ~ 93 

•' thanksgiving. In regard to the imperfect, they may be deem- 
" ed acts of propitiation ; though they bring no aid to the very 
'' bad, they may give some comfort to the living." 

Tradition, in favour of the catholic doctrine of purgatory, is 
so strong, that Calvin confesses explicitly, that "during 1,300 
" years before his time, (1,600 before ours,) it had been the 
" practice to pray for the dead, in the hope of procuring them 
" relief." You yourself will scarcely venture to assert, that there 
is any thing substantially wrong in this devotion, when you 
recollect, that archbishop Cranmer said a solemn mass for the 
soul of Henry II. of France; that bishop Ridley preached, and 
that eight other prelates assisted at it in their copes. 



X. 3. 

Auricular Confession — Indulgences, 

In respect to the auricular confession, I hope you will be 
convinced, that it does not deserve a better word, when you 
have perused the following testimonies in its favour. 

" The Lutheran," s^s doctor Milner, in his End of Contro- 
versy, " who are the elder branch of the reformation, in their 
" confession of faith, and apology for that confession, express - 
'^ ly teach, that absolution is no less a sacrament than baptism 
" and the Lord's Supper; that particular absolution is to be re- 
" tained in confession ; that, to reject it, is the error of the N o- 
" vatian heretics ; and that, by the power of the keys, (Matth. 
" xvi. 19,) sins are remitted, not only in the sight of the church, 
" but also in the sight of God.'* Luther himself, in his cate- 
" chism, required that the penitent, in confession, should express- 

* Confess. August art. xi. xii. xiii. Apol. 



94 CONFESSION. [Letter 

" ly declare, that he believes the forgiveness of the priest to be 
" the forgiveness of God.* What can bishop Porteus, and oth- 
" er modern protestants, say to all this, except that Luther and 
" his disciples were infected ^ith popery ? Let us then pro- 
" ceed to inquire into the doctrine of the most distinguished 
" heads. In the order of the communion, composed by Cran- 
" mer, and published by Edward VI., the parson, vicar, or cu- 
" rate, is to proclaim this, among other things, ' If there be any 
" of you, whose conscience is troubled and grieved at any 
" thing, lacking comfort or counsel, let him come to me, or to 
" some other learned priest, and confess and open his sin and 
" grief secretly, &c. that of us, as a minister of God, and of the 
" church, he may receive comfort and absolution.'! Conform- 
" ably with this admonition, it is ordained in the common 
" Prayer Book, ' that when the minister visits any sick person, 
'' the latter should be moved to make a special confession of 
" his sins, if he feels his conscience troubled with any weighty 
'' matter; after which confession, the priest should absolve him, 
" if he humbly and heartily desire it, after this sort : Our Lord 
" Jesus Christ J who hath left power to his church to absolve all 
" sinners^ who truly repent and believe in him^ of his great mer- 
" C2/, forgive thee thine offences ; and iy his authority^ com- 
" mitted to me, / absolve thee from all thy sins^ in the name of 
"flie Father^ and of the Son^ and of the Holy Ghost. AmenP'l 
" I may add, that soon after James I. became, at the same time, 
" the member and the head of the English church, he desired 

*In Catech. Parv. See also Luther's Table Talk, c. xviii. on Auri- 
cular Gonfession. 

t Bishop Sparrow's Collect, p. 10. 

t Order of the Visitation of the Sick. JV. B. To encourage the secret 
confession of sins, the church of England has made a canon, requiring 
her ministers not to reveal the same. See Canones Eccles. a. d, 1693, 
n. 113. 



X.] CONFESSION. 95 

" his prelates to inform him, in the conference at Hampton 
" Court, what authority this church claimed in the article of 
" absolution from sin. When archbishop Whitgift began to 
" entertain him with an account of the general confession and 
" absolution, in the communion service, with which the king 
" not being satisfied, Bancroft, at that time bishop of London, 
" fell on his knees, and said, ' It becomes us to deal plainly 
'* with your majesty. There is also in the book a more par- 
" ticular and personal absolution in the Visitation of the Sick. 
" Not only the confession of Augusta, (Augsburg,) Bohemia 
" and Saxony, retain and allow it, but also Mr. Calv^in doth 
'' approve both such a general and such a private confession 
" and absolution.' To this the king answered, ' I exceedingly 
" well approve of it, being an apostolical and godly ordinance, 
^ given, in the name of Christ, to one that desireth it, upon the 
" clearing of his conscience.' "* 

I beg leave to add the words of the " immortal Chilling- 
" worth" ; for by this epithet he is frequently distinguished by 
your writers. 

" Can any man be so unreasonable as to imagine that, when 
" our Saviour in so solemn a manner, — having first breathed 
'^ upon his disciples, thereby conveying and insinuating the 
" Holy Ghost into their hearts, — renewed unto them, or rather 
" confirmed that glorious commission, &c. whereby he dele- 
" gated to them an authority of binding and loosing sins upon 
" earth, &c. — can any one think, 1 say, so unworthily of our 

* Fuller's Ch. Hist. B. x. p. 9. See the defence of Bancroft's successor 
in the see of Canterbury, doctor Laud, who endeavoured to enforce au- 
ricular confession, in Heylin's Life of Laud, part 2, p. 415. It appears, 
from this writer, that Laud was confessor to the duke of Buckingham ; 
and, from Burnet, that bishop Morley was confessor to the duchfess of 
York, when a protestant. Hist, of his own Times. 



96 INDULGENCES. [Letter 

" Saviour, as to esteem these words of his for no better than 
" compliment ? Therefore, in obedience to his gracious will, 
" and as I am warranted and enjoined by my holy mother, the 
" church of England, I beseech you, that, by your practice and 
" use, you will not suffer that commission, which Christ hath 
" given to his ministers, to be a vain form of words, without 
" any sense under them. When you find yourselves charged 
" and oppressed, &c. have recourse to your spiritual physician, 
'^ and freely disclose the nature and malignancy of your dis- 
" ease, &c. And come riot to him only with such mind as you 
" would go to a learned man ; as one that can speak comfort- 
" alle things to you ; hut as to one thai hath authority delegat- 
'' ed to him from God himself to absolve and acquit you of 
" your sinsy* 

To these testimonies, — which should have so much weight 
with you, — I shall only add the same observation as I have 
just made on our doctrine of prayers for the dead ; that in the 
Greek church, and in the numerous oriental churches of the 
Nestorians, Eutychians, and Monothelites, who separated from 
the church of Rome at an early age of Christianity, auricular 
confession is retained and practised. Does not this circum- 
stance incontrovertibly prove its early admission into the church ? 
In ecclesiastical doctrine and discipline is not such early anti- 
quity always respectable ? 

In respect to indulgences, — I flatter myself that, when you 
see the doctrine of the roman-catholics upon them, divested of 
the misrepresentations which have too often been made of it, 
and are yet too often repeated, you will find nothing in it con- 
trary to common sense, or prejudicial to the interests of reli- 
gion or morality. 

♦Serm. vii. Relig. of Prot. pp. 408, 409. 



X.] INDULGENCES. 97 

The roman-catholic church teaches, that God frequently re- 
mits the essential guilt of sin and the eternal punishment in- 
curred by it, but leaves a temporal punishment to be incurred 
by the sinner; that this temporal punishment may consist ei- 
ther of evil in this life, or of temporal suffering in the next, — 
which temporal suffering in the next life we call purgatory; 
that the temporal punishment may consist of both these inflic- 
tions, and that ^ the church has received power from God to re- 
mit them either wholly or partially. This remission is called 
an Indulgence. When the temporal punishment is wholly re- 
mitted, the indulgence is said to be plenary ; when the remis- 
sion is partial, the indulgence is proportionably limited. Thus, 
an indulgence of a certain number of days, or of months, or 
years, is a remission, during that period of time, of the tempo- 
ral punishment due to the sinner. 

To every indulgence conditions are annexed : the first, is sin- 
cere repentence. Now, in the understanding of the catholic 
church, sincere repentance always includes a sincere sorrow for 
having offended God ; and, when a neighbour has been injured, 
full reparation for the injury, when the circumstances of the pen- 
itent allow it ; or, when this is not the case, the fullest reparation 
in his power, with a firm resolution to complete it, if his cir- 
cumstances should afterwards enable him so to do. This res- 
titution equally extends to injuries in character, as to personal 
or pecuniary injuries. It is never dispensed with. Will the 
making of it reduce the penitent to indigence ? Will it occasion 
the loss of his own character.? Still the priest insists upon its 
being made. Such is the doctrine, such the practice of the ro- 
man-catholic church respecting indulgences; 

J wish you would peruse the sermons of Bourdaloue '' Sur 
" la Restitution," and " Sur le Jubile." — After you have perus- 
ed them, I should wish to ask you whether, if you should find 
9 



98 INDULGENCES. Letter 

yourself injured in fortune or character, and learn that the per- 
son who had injured you was a roman-catholic, you 'would 
feel you had a less chance of restitution on account of the cath- 
olic doctrine of confession and of indulgences ? 

You mention the abuses of indulgences. You say indul- 
gences have been too easily granted ; and that they have been 
often sold. It is too true : but what has not been abused ? 
There is not in the universe a territoiy in which, in every secu- 
lar, and every ecclesiastical department, some abuse does not 
exist. Are we, on that account, to conclude with the Lol- 
lards, and other Manichean radicals, that all government is evil ? 

You have seen the " Taxa Cancellarii Romani ;" and you 
conclude that the sums o^' money, stated in that document to 
be paid for absolutions, are the purchase of them at those prices. 
The real state of the case is as follows -.—There are some sins 
SQ enormous, that, in order to raise the greater horror of them, 
the absolution from them is reserved to the holy see. In these 
cases the priest, to whom the penitent reveals them in confes- 
sion, states them, without any rhention of person, time or 
place, to the roman see ; and the roman see, when it thinks the 
circumstance of the case renders it proper, grants a faculty to 
the priest to absolve the penitent from them. All this is atten- 
ded with expense. An office or tribunal is kept up for the 
purpose, and, to defray the expenses attending these applica- 
tions, a fee is required for the document in which the power of 
absolution is granted. Thus these sums of money are only 

fees of office : they are small : the lips of a Roman datary would 

p. 
water at the sight- of a bill of an English proctor. When the 

absolute poverty of the party is stated, no fee is required. 

Does the church of England grant no indulgence or absolu- 
tion for money ? Consult your own canons.* In a remonstrance 

* Articuli pro Claro, a. d. 1584, Sparrow, 195. Received by the Synod 
of London in 1597, Sparrow, 248 — 252. Canon 14, Sparrow, 368. 



X.] AUGUSTINE. 99 

of grievances presented by a committee of the Irish parliament 
10 Charles I. complaint is made that " several bishops received 
" great sums of monej^ for commutations of penance, which 
" they had converted to their own use,"^ Has not doctor Glo- 
verf abundantly shown that commutations of penance for mo-^ 
ney are. at this time practised in your church ? Do I, -then, 
criminate the church of England upon this account ? I only 
sa}^, that her ministers should be circumspect in criminating the 
church of Rome for similar commutations. 



X. 4. • 

St. Jlugustine and Pelagius. 

'^ Britain,'' you inform us, " has the credit or discredit, 
" whichever it may be deemed, of ha^nng given birth to Pela- 
" gius, the most remarkable man of whom Wales can boast, and 
" the most reasonable of all those men, whom the antient church 
" has branded with the note of heresy." What proofs of a su- 
perior reason were exhibited by Pelagius, I have yet to learn. 
By your account, he denied original sin ; and this, you justly 
observe, " is a perilous error." But, by your account also, " he 
" vindicated the goodness of God, by asserting the free-will of 
" man •, and he judged more sanely than his triumphant antag- 
" onist St. Augustine, who, retaining too much of the philoso- 
" phy which he had learned in the Manichean school, infected 
" with it the whole church, during many centuries, and after- 
" wards divided both the catholic and the protestant world." 
Is this a fair statement of the comparative merit of Pelagius 

* Cited by doctor Curry, in his Historical Memoirs of Ireland, vol. 1, p. 
109. 
j- In his reply to the Bishop of Peterborough. 



100 AUGUSTINE [Letter 

and St. Augustine ? Does it give an accurate view of the con- 
troversy between them ? You add^ that, " of all those ambi- 
" tious spirits, who have adulterated the true doctrine of reve- 
'' lation with their own opinions, Augustine, perhaps, is the one 
" who has produced the widest and most injurious effects." 

IMany of the most eminent lights of your church have enter- 
tained a very different opinion of this great man; you will find 
their testimonies collected in Mr. Brerely's " Religion of St. 
" Augustine," printed in 1620. Luther* affirms, that, "since 
" the apostles' time, the church had never a better doctor than 
" St.. Augustine ;" and that, " after the sacred scriptures, there 
" is no doctor in the church, who is to be compared with him." 
If you even cursorily run over the parts of doctor Lardner's 
learned work, which relate to the Manichees, you will see that 
the doctor repeatedly mentions St. Augustine in terms of the 
highest praise ; and, as Lardner had attentively read and consid- 
ered all St. Augustine's works, his testimony is certainly of the 
greatest importance. Permit me to recommend his " Confes- 
" sions" to your perusal; you will be delighted with them. If 
he had written no other work, this would give him a high rank 
among the most sublime, elegant and pious writers. 

As to your preference of Pelagius, I need not mention to a 
gentleman of your learning, that disputes on free-will have agi- 
tated the world, both before and after the introduction of Chris- 
tianity. The difficulty has always been to discover some sys- 
tem, which reconciles the freedom of will with the influence of 
motives upon it ; and which makes the good works of men me- 
ritorious in the eyes of the Almighty, while yet they remain his 
absolute gift. Pelagius maintained, that, both in the choice and 
execution of good, man acts independently of divine grace. In 

*Luth. Op. ed. Witten, torn. 7 ; Loc. Comm. class 4, p. 45. 



X.] AND PELAGIUS. 101 

opposition, to him, St. Augustine maintained, that grace prevents 
and aids our will; but does not destroy it. When he was 
pressed to explain, how God could be the sole author of good, 
unless his grace necessitated man to the choice or execution 
of it, he acknowledged the extreme difficulty of the question : 
he frequently gives no other answer, than exclaiming with St. 
Paul : * "Oh ! the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and 
" the knowledge of God ! His judgments, how ensearchable ! 
" his ways, how past belief!" He felt that the subject was 
beyond his reason ; the time he knew would come, when " the 
" Almighty would be judged and overcome;" — that is, when 
all the dispositions of his providence would be unfolded ; and 
the justice, the wisdom, and the holiness of his councils, would 
be seen and acknowledged. 

Such is the system of St. Augustine on this difficult and ab- 
struse subject : — I leave you now to decide between him and 
his adversary. 

I am the more surprised at the harshness of your language, 
in reject to St. Augustine, as that great man was harsh to no 
one : he was mild and humble, even to those, whom he thought 
most to deserve blame. One passage in his writings is, upon 
this account, so exquisitely beautiful, that I cannot help trans- 
cribing it, particularly as I know that you, too, will peruse it 
with pleasure : — '^ Let those be severe upon persons in error, 
" who know not with what labour truth is discovered, and er- 
" ror avoided. Let those be severe who know not how harsh- 
•' ly the diseases of the mind are cured, and the eye of the un- 
" derstanding prepared to see the light. Let those be severe 
'- who were never entangled in error. As for me, I cannot be 
" severe ; 1 know the patience and long forbearance I myself 
" have wanted."! 

* Rom. xi. 33, 1 1 Ep. ad Fund. 

9* 



102 WRITERS ON [Letter 

X. 5. 

Transubstantiation. 

You will expect to find something in this letter upon the 
important question of transubstantiation. 

You inform us, that, " of all the corruptions of Christianity, 
" there was none which the popes so long hesitated to sanction 
" as transubstantiation." You mention " the flagrant absurdity 
" of this doctrine ;" and you say, that " pope Gregory VII. in- 
" clined to the opinion of Berenger, who opposed it." But 
there is not one of these assertions for which you cite any au- 
thority : / deny them all : and for the authorities upon which 
1 ground my denial, I refer you to " Doctor Blilner's Letter 
" on Transubstantiation," among those addressed by him to 
the late doctor Sturges ; to his letters on the same subject in 
his " End of Controversy," and to his " Powerful vindication 
" of it. " — " 1 do, in my heart," the late dean Milner of Car- 
lise used to say, " love a strong argument :" if you have the 
same liking, I recommend you to peruse the three works I have 
just mentioned: many a strong argument on the subject in 
question you will find in every one of them. If you will pe- 
ruse the account of Berenger, in the Histoire Liieraire de la 
France^ you will find your total misrepresentation of the trans- 
actions between that celebrated man and pope Gregory VII. 
You will find that, as soon as Berenger's doctrine became 
known, it received that blow, which tradition always gives to 
religious novelty, — the universal reprobation of it by the pas- 
tors of the church of Christ. You will also find, that before it 
was condemned by Gregory VII., it had been successively con- 
- damned by pope Leo IX., Victor II., Nicholas II., and Alexan- 



X.] AUTHORITY OF THE POPE. 103 

der H., and proscribed by councils held at Rome, at Paris, at 
Vercelli, in 1050; at Florance, in 1054; at Rome, in 1058? 
1076, 1078, and 1079; and finally, that after many subterfuges, 
it was retracted by its author : that he lived ten years after his 
retraction, and never swerved from it. It is possible that, after 
perusing these lines, and consulting the authorities to which 
they refer, you should remain an unbeliever in the catholic 
doctrine of transubstantiation ; but I shall be surprised if you 
should continue to think, that when Gregory VII. ascended the 
pontifical throne, it was a novelty; or that it is decent to treat 
it, or the believers of it, with contumely. 

I shall resume the subject in a subsequent letter : I shall 
there consider the statute of the 30th of Chas. II. which ren- 
ders it necessary for peers, before they take their seats in par- 
liament, to take an oath against transubstantiation; and thus, 
while it admits Jews, Mahometans, Deists and Atheists into 
parliament, excludes roman-catholic peers from their heredita- 
ry seats in that august assembly. 



X. 6. 

1. — The Authority of the Pope. 

Towards the end of your present chapter, you cite from 
some roman-catholic writers, and roman-catholic documents, 
several expressions respecting the rank and power of the pope, 
and represent them equally astonishing and disgusting by their 
general folly or impiety. But you do not, in a single instance, 
mention the work or the document from which your citations 
are made. Supposing them all to be truly represented, still \ 
they do not affect the catholic cause ; as they are not the Ian- / 
guage of the catholic church, but expressions of individuals, / 



k^ 



104 AUTHORITY OF THE POPE. [Letter 

for whom, whatever may' be their rank or character, the ro- 
man-catholic church is not^^answerable. 

A chain of roman-catholic writers on papal power might be 
supposed : On the first link we might place the roman-catholic 
writers, who have immoderately exaKed the prerogative of the 
pope; on the last we might place those, who have unduly de- 
pressed it ; and the centre link might be considered to repre- 
sent the canon of the 1 0th session of the council of Florence, 
which defined, that ''full power was delegated to the bishop of 
" Rome, in the person of St. Peter, to feed, regulate, and go- 
♦" vern the universal church, as expressed in the general coun- 
'' cils and holy canons.^' This is the doctrine of the 

ROMAN-CATHOLIC CHURCH ON THE AUTHORITY OF THE POPE, 

and beyond it no roman-catholic is required to believe. Some 
opinions, represented by the intermediate links on each side 
of the central link, are allowed. Those, on one side, may be 
supposed to represent Orsi, and the author of the learned trea- 
tise, entitled '^ Quis est PetrusP"^ who explain the doctrine, 
expressed in the council of Florence, in a manner very favour- 
able to the papal prerogative ; while the intermediate links, on 
the other side, represent Bossuet, la Marca, and other writers, 
who construe the canoil in a more limited sense. The former 
have received the appellation of Transalpine divines ; the lat- 
ter, are called Cisalpine. I will endeavour to present you 
with a short view of their different systems ; first premising 
what the roman-catholic church considers to be of faith upon 
this important article of her creed. 



X.] SUPREMACY OF THE POPE. 105 



X. 6. 

<2. — Universal Doctrine of the Roman- Catholics respecting-- 
the Supremacy of the Pope. 

It is an article of the roman-catholic faith^ that the pope 
has, by divine right, 1. A supremacy of rank; 2. A suprema- 
cy of jurisdiction in the spiritual concerns of the roman-catho- 
lic church ; and 3. The principal authority in defining articles 
of faith. In consequence of these prerogatives, the pope holds 
a rank, splendidly pre-eminent, over the highest dignitaries of 
the church ; has a right to convene councils, and preside over 
them by himself, or his legates, and to confirm the election of 
bishops. Every ecclesiastical cause may be brought to him 
as the last resort, by appeal ; he may promulgate definitions 
and formularies of faith to the universal church 5 and, when 
the general body, or a great majority of her prelates, have as- 
sented to them, either by formal consent, or tacit assent, aU are 
bound to acquiesce in them. " Rome," they say, in such a 
case, "has spoken, and the cause is determined." To the 
pope, in the opinion of all roman-catholics, belongs also a ge- 
neral superintendence of the concerns of the church ; a right, 
when the canons provide no line of action, to direct the pro- 
ceedings ; and, in extraordinary cases, to act in opposition to 
the canons. In those spiritual concerns, in which, by strict 
right, his authority is not definitive, he is entitled to the highest 
respect and deference. Thus far, there is no difierence of opir 
nion among roman-catholics : but here, they divaricate into 
the Transalpine and Cisalpine opinions. You must be aware, 
that I use the words Transalpine and Cisalpine in the sense in 
which they are generally used in these discussions : there cer- 



106 TRANSALPINE, [Letter 

tainly are some Transalpine territories in which the Cisalpine 
opinions, on papal power, prevail ; but I am not aware of the 
existence of any Cisalpine territory, which adopts the Trans- 
alpine opinions. 



X. 6. 

^.—Difference between Transalpine and Cisalpine Doctrines,^ 
on the Temporal and Spiritual Power of the Pope, 

The great difference between the Transalpine and Cisalpine 
divmes, on the power of the pope, formerly was, — that the 
Transalpine divines attributed to the pope a divine right to 
the exercise, indirect at least, of temporal power, for effecting 
a spiritual good ; and, in consequence of it, maintained, that 
the supreme power of every state was so far subject to the 
pope, that, when he deemed that the bad conduct of the so- 
vereign rendered it essential to the good of the church, that he 
should reign no longer, the pope was then authorized, by his 
divine commission, to deprive him of his sovereignty, and ab- 
solve his subjects from their obligation of allegiance ; and that 
even, on ordinary occasions, he might enforce obedience to his 
spiritual legislation and jurisdiction, by civil penalties. On 
the other hand, the Cisalpine divines affirmed, that the pope 
had no right, either to interfere in temporal concerns, or to 
enforce obedience to his spiritual legislation or jurisdiction, by 
temporal power ; and consequently, had no right to deprive a 
sovereign of his sovereignty, to absolve his subjects from their 
allegiance, or to enforce his spiritual authority over either, by 
civil penalties. This difference of opinio.n^xists now no long- 
er, the Transalpine divines having at leaigth adopted, on this 
subject, the Cisalpine opinions. 



X.] AND CISALPINE. 107 

But though, on this hnportant point, both parties are at last 
agreed, they still differ on others. 

In spiritual concerns, the Transalpine opinions ascribe to 
the pope a superiority, and controlling power over the whole 
church, should she chance to oppose his decrees, and conse- 
quently, over a general council, her representative ; and the 
same superiority and controlling power, even in the ordinary 
course of business, over the canons of the universal church. 
They describe the pope as the fountain of all ecclesiastical or- 
der, jurisdiction, and dignity. They assign to him the power 
of judging all persons in spiritual concerns ; of calling all spi- 
ritual causes to his cognizance; of constituting, suspending, 
and deposing bishops *, of conferring all ecclesiastical dignities 
and benefices, in or out of his dominions, by paramount autho- 
rity; of exempting individuals and communities from the ju- 
risdiction of their prelates ; of evoking to himself, or to judges 
appointed by him, any cause actually pending in an ecclesias- 
tical court ; and of receiving immediately appeals from all sen- 
tences of ecclesiastical courts, though they be inferior courts, 
V from which there is a regular appeal to* an intermediate supe- 
rior court. They, further, ascribe to the pope the extraordina- 
ry prerogative of personal infallibility, when he undertakes to 
issue a solemn decision on any point of faith. 

The CisaljAnes affirm, that in spirituals the pope is subject, 
in doctrine and discipline, to the church, and to a general coun- 
cil, representing her ; that he is subject to the canons of the 
church, and cannot, except in an extreme case, dispense with 
them; that, even in such a case, his dispensation is subject to 
the judgment of the church ; that the bishops derive their ju- 
risdiction from God himself immediately, and not derivatively 
through the pope ; that he has no right to confer bishoprics, 
or other spiritual benefices of any kind, the patronage of which, 



108 APPELLATIONS OF [Lettef 

by common right, prescription, concordat, or any other gene- 
ral rule of the church, is vested in another. They admit, that 
an appeal lies to the pope from the sentence of the metropoli- 
tan ; but assert, that no appeal lies to the pope, and that he can 
evoke no cause to himself, during the intermediate process. 
They affirm, that a general council may without, and even 
against, the pope's consent, reform the church. They deny 
his personal infallibility, and hold that he may be deposed by 
the church, or a general council, for heresy or schism ; and 
they admit, that in an extreme case,* where there is a great di- 
vision of opinion, an appeal lies from the pope to a future gene- 
ral council. " 

In 1788, certain questions on the power of the pope, in tem- 
poral concerns, were sent by the desire of Mr. Pitt to several 
foreign universities, for their opinions upon them. We shall 
transcribe, in the Appendix, these questions, and the answers 
given to them by the universities. 

Such are the Transalpine, and such the Cisalpine opinions, 
respecting the power of the pope; each, you must be sensible, 
recedes far from the extreme opinions, which the ending links 
of my supposed chain of opinion represent. Both are toler- 
ated by the roman-catholic church, hut neither speaks its faith : 
this, as I have mentioned, is contained in the canon of the 
council of Florence, which I have cited. All the doctrine of 
that canon on the point in question, and nothing but that doc- 

* Instancies of which are, according to the account of Bossuet, so very 
rare, that it is scarcely possible to find true examples of such an extreme 
case in the course of several ages. " Ce qii'il a de principal, c'est, que 
" les cas, auxquels la France soutient le jecours du pape au concile, sont 
" si rares, qu a peine on peut en trouver de vrais examples, en plusieurs 
" siecles," Lettre du Bossuet au Cardinal d'Estrees. Oeuvres de Bos- 
suet, vol. 9, p. 272. ed. Ben. 



X.] THE POPE. 109 

trine, is propounded by the roman-catholic church to be be- 
lieved by the faithful : — with this doctrine, but with this doc- 
trine only, and the consequences justly deducible from it, are 
the roman-catholics answerable. 



X. 6. 



4. — Remarks on Doctor SoutJiey'^s Crimination of the Roman- 
catholic Churchy in consequence of the alleged intemperate 
Expressions of some of her Writers on the Pope'^s authority. 

Hitherto I have addressed you on the supposition, that the 
doctrines and sayings, with which you vituperate us, are to be 
found in respectable writers, and are fairly represented. You 
cite no author; you produce no document to prove your asser- 
tions. You must be aware how much this increases the diffi- 
culty of the defence which your work imposes upon us ; you 
must, therefore, excuse me for expressing a doubt, whether any 
of ftie expressions are used by any roman-catholic writers in 
the sense which you put upon them; and whether they have 
eyer been used by any author, whose character is such, as con- 
fers importance on his words. 

You say, that the appellation of God has sometimes been 
applied to the pope. I admit it; but are you to learn, that, in 
the Bible, kings, princes, and magistrates are styled gods ? not 
as divinities, or as partakers of the divine nature, but as per- 
sons eminently exalted, and exercising, by delegation, the pow- 
er, justice or mercy, or some other attribute of the divinity. 
How often do the christian emperors mention, nostra divinitas^ 
nostra perennitas^ nostra ceternitas^ nostrce diviruB vocis oracu- 
lum^ nostra divina sanci^a,— -our divinity, our eternity, the ora- 

10 



no APPELLATIONS OF [Letter 

cle of our divine voice, our divine laws ? Read Selderi^s Ti- 
tles of Ho7ior ]^ read your own Calvin?s Commentary on the 
Passages in the Psalms, in which David is called " son of God," 
Solomon is called " God," and judges are called " gods." He 
shows, that the word '' God" is used in all these cases, not as 
an attribution of divinity to the persons to whom it is applied, 
but as describing their supereminent dignity. That, in some 
instances, this expression has been used in the secondary sense 
I have mentioned, and generally in bad taste, I willingly con- 
cede ; in fact, many of the epithets, by which monarchs and 
other illustrious persons are described, will not bear the test of 
criticism ; you know how Erasmus laughs at them in the Eiv- 
comium Morice. I am very willing to join you in his laugh at 
them ; but I am somewhat surprised to see you thus treat the 
matter seriously. To treat it thus, became Foulis, the author 
of the " History of Romish Treasons," that great arsenal of an- 
ti-catholic ribaldry, who probably supplied you with the ob- 
servation; but surely, to make it a subject of solemn words 
was quite unworthy of you. I defy you to produce one in- 
stance, in which the word " God." used potentialiter to indi- 
cate the Supreme Being, has been applied by any catholic wri- 
ter to the pope ; or an instance, in which, used in any sense 
any pope has accepted it, or applied it to himself. Then why 
is this odious, this invidious, this disgusting charge brought 
forward against us ? 

In the last page but one of your present chapter you say, 
'^ Even this monstrous proposition has been advanced : that, 
'' although the catholic faith teaches all virtue to be good, and 
'' all vice evil, nevertheless, if the pope, through error, should 
^' enjoin vices to be committed, and prohibit virtues, the church 

* The first part, c. v. s. 3. 



X.] THE POPE. Ill 

" would be bound to believe, that vices were good, and virtue 
'' evil, and would sin in conscience were it to believe other- 
" wise. He could change the nature of things, and make in- 
" justice justice." 

Monstrous, indeed, would be such a doctrine ! Equally mon- 
strous is it to charge it on the roman^catholic church. Is not 
the charge founded altogether on a passage in the treatise of 
cardinal Bellarmine, de Romano Pontifice ?* If this be the case, 
your charge is so brittle, that it will fall to the dust the mo- 
ment you open the page of Bellarmine which contains it. — 
You will then instantaneously see, not only that Bellarmine 
does not teach the doctrine which you ascribe to the church, 
but that he holds the direct reverse of it to be an acknowledged 
and indubitable truth. He states a proposition ; controverts it; 
and professes to prove its erroneousness, by shewing, that if it 
were true, " it would authorise the pope to make virtue vice, 
^' and vice virtue." Thus you will find that the proposition 
which you impute to Bellarmine, is considered by hun to be 
such a perfect absurdity, and so clear and acknowledged a false- 
hood, that a proposition leading to it, or from which it would 
follow as a consequence, must partake of its nature, and be- 
come absurd and false. Is not therefore the doctrine of the 
roman-catholics diametrically contrary to your representation 
of it } 

A little further you say, that " the commentators even gave 
" the pope the blasphemous appellation of our lord god the 
" POPE." Two hundred years ago this charge was brought 
against the commentators^ and two hundred years ago it was 
triumphantly refuted. You probably have copied it, at first or 

♦Liber iv. c. 5, de Decretis Morum, torn. 1. p. 721, ed. Lugdun. fol. 
1596. And see in the same volume, p. 393, 394, 789, 790, where he no- 
tices the doctrine, that '^ the pope is lord of the world." 



112 PAPAL AUTHORITY. [Letter 

second hand, from the Glosscb final, cap. cum inter Extra^ Joan. 
xxii. Father Eudaemon Joannes, in his Apology for Father 
Garnet, published in 1610, informs us, that, " in the passage in 
" question, he found the word Deum^ (God,) in some editions 
" of the Gloss, and omitted in others ; that he therefore resolv- 
" ed to consult the Zenzelini manuscript at the Vatican, which" 
he says, " might be seen every day ;" and " that he found that 
" the real reading was, dominum nostrum papam," — our 
" LORD THE POPE. After this explanation, you will assuredly 
agree with me, that there is not greater reason to charge the 
commentators on the Corpus Juris Canonici, with giving the 
pope the appellation of God, than to charge the church of Eng- 
land with legalizing adultery, because in some copies of the 
English Bible, the word " not" is omitted in the commandment 
against adultery. 

In the same work, Eellarmine notices the proposition, that 
" the pope is lord of all the world." I presume you have this 
proposition in view, when you say, that* '^ the romanists claim- 
" ed for the pope a plenitude of power; that he exercised it 
" over the princes of Christendom, in its fullest meaning; that 
" he was king of kings, and lord of lords." The proposition, 
in the words I have mentioned, is propounded, discussed, and 
refuted by Bellarmine. In fact, it is so absurd a proposition, 
as to make a refutation of it an almost total waste of time. Are 
you ignorant that it is rejected as the extreme of error, not to 
say, as the exti-eme of nonsense and impiety, by a countless 
number of the most eminent catholic writers.'' How many 
works, for asserting it, or propositions approaching to it, have 
been publicly censured ? How many, as those of Santarellus 
and Malagola, have been condemned, in catholic countries, in 
the strongest terms of reprobation ? upon what ground, there- 
fore, can you impute the affirmance of the proposition, thusjby 



X.] PAPAL AUTHORITY. 113 

them universally scouted, to the roman-catholics ? At all 
events, justice required that you should name the authors in 
whose writings the propositions, you thus hold out to abomi- 
nation, are to be found. I suspect that, if you were to do this, 
it would be very generally seen, that the expressions in ques- 
tion were used by them, though in a very bad taste , to describe 
the supreme spiritual power of the church, and of the pope as ' 
her spiritual head, to govern all the faithful in spiritual con- 
cerns, and to controul all the refractory, by spiritual censures, 
ending at last in excommunication. If this be so, do roman- 
catholics claim more power for their church, than is claimed 
by the protestants for theirs ? Do not the ministers of your 
church claim the power of excommunication ? To this, are 
not all its members, whether kings, lords, or subjects, equally 
liable ? Does not every stone, that you thus throw at our 
church, equally hit your own ? 

Do the words, which you have cited from our authors, im- 
port more than this ? If they do not, are not your own writers 
equally blameable ? Think of the doctrines of your venerated 
WlcklifFe; of your other venerated reformers of the middle 
ages ; think of the primitive reformers ] think of the extreme 
doctrines and extreme practices of Knox : — They incontestibly 
show, that, in their opinion, kings, lords, and subjects, may, 
if the good of the churcli require it, be punished by excommu- 
nication, and even by something beyond it. 

Think of bishop Gibson's complaints of the constitutional 
rights of the temporal courts of this kingdom to jssue prohibi- 
tions to the spiritual courts ; of his intimation that parliament 
should not meddle with the concerns of religion ; of his dislike 
of the court of Delegates; of his objection to lay chancellors, 
lay commissaries, and other lay officials in spiritual courts; of 
his exalted notions of the force of canons promulgated by the 
10^ 



114 PAPAL AUTHORITY. [Letter 

church ; of his wish that no acts of parliament, respecting re- 
ligion, should be passed, unless they were previously submit- 
ted to the clergy, and had their approbation ; of his lamentation 
that ecclesiastical process is served in the name of the king.* 
Is the spirit which suggested these complaints, objections, dis- 
likes, and lamentations, in the eighteenth century, 'i;er2/ different 
from the spirit of the advocates of the independence of the 
clergy of the civil power, in the middle ages ? 

In another part of your present chapter, you mention that 
there were ambassadors " who prostrated themselves before 
" the pope, saying, 'O thou! who takest away the sins of the 
" world, have mercy upon us !' " Perhaps you are indebted 
for this story to Foulis. Even that most violent author inti- 
mates what you wholly omit, that the pope resiled from the 
salutation. Paulus Emilius^ on whose credit the tale rests al- 
together, relates, that the ^' city of Palermo, having grievously 
'-' offended the pope, sent some holy men to him as ambassa- 
" dors, Tvho prostrated themselves at his feet, and saluted 
^' Christ the Lamb of God, as before an altar and the blessed 
^^ sacrament, and suppliantly pronounced the mystic words of 
'^ the altar, ^ Lamb of God, who takest avv^ay the sins of the 
*•' world, have mercy on us ! Who takest away the sins of the 
^' world, have mercy on us ! Who takest away the sins of 
^' the world, give us peace.' The pope replied by telling 
•' them, that they acted like those who, after they had struck 
'• Christ, saluted him as King of the Jews ; that, in reality, they 
'• were his enemies, although in these words they wished him 
" health." I transcribe in a note the historian's text."!* Per- 

* Seethe preface to his Cqdex. 

t" Cum apud pontificem de hac consternatione ageretur, a Panormita- 
"nis missos ad eum oratores, viros sanctos ; qui ad pedes illius strati, velut 
"proara hostiaque, christum agnumdei salutantes, ilia etiam ex altaris 



X.] PAPAL AUTHORITY. • 115 

mit me to observe to you, that much of your charge is unfound- 
ed. You describe the ambassadors as addressing the pope as 
Lamb of God; the historian describes them as addressing 
Christ, the Lamb of God : you leave your readers to suppose 
that it was a mere matter of ceremony ; the historian informs 
us, that it was an appeal made in a moment of great distress to 
the feelings of the pope, by bringing to his mind the supplica- 
tory address in the mass to Christ the Lamb of God : You leave 
your readers to suppose that the address was favourably receiv- 
ed; the historian shows that it was indignantly rejected. 

You must excuse me for believing, that, if I had the com- 
mand of more time, and a greater library than falls to my lot, 
I might discover other inaccuracies in the present chapter of 
your work. Be that as it may, permit me to request you will 
say, if you conscientiously believe that there is now a single 
catholic, who can justly be charged with the monstrous and 
blasphemous doctrines with which you attempt in this part of 
your v/ork to brand us. Think of tfie Gallican declaration in 
1682, which, so far as respects ihe independence of the secu- 
lar on the spiritual power, in temporal concerns, is recognized 
by the whole roman-catholic v/crld ; — think of the opinions 
of the foreign universities, obtained by the direction of Mr. 
Pitt; — think of the oaths taken by the English, the Irish, and 
the Scottish catholics ; — think of their conduct ; — then declare 
explicitly, whether as a man, as a gentleman, or as a christian, 
you can, fairly and honourably, thus malign us ? 

" mysteriis verba supplices efFarentur, — " Qui tollis peccata mundi mise- 
" rere nostri :~Qai tollis peccata mundi miserere nostri : — Qui tollis pec- 
" cata mundi, dona nobis pacem. Pontificem respondisse, Panormita- 
'* nos agere quod fecissent qui cum Christum pulsarent, eundem regem 
" judseorum salutabant, re hostes, fando salvere jubentes." PauU Emi- 
Hi Veronensis Historici Clarissmi, De rebus geslis Fmncorum. Liber x, 
Chronicon de iisdem regibus ex Pharamundo usque ad Henricum ii. fol. 328, 



116 CHARGES AGAINST [Letter 

I shall close this letter by a transcription of the following 
publication :— I hope it will vindicate us, in the opinion of all 
its readers, from the charges to which it refers. 



X. 6. 

5. — Defence^ ly a Roman-catholic Divine^ of the Roman- 
catholic Church against Charges brought agojinst her by the 
present Rishop of Winchester. 

In the life of Mr. Pitt, recently published by doctor Tom- 
line, the bishop of Vv^inchester, a short account is given of the 
passing of the act of 1 79 1, for the relief of the English romah- 
catholics; it occasioned considerable surprise among the ca- 
tholics, and produced, from a secular clergyman of their com- 
munion, the following letter to his lordship : — 

"My Lord, 

" In your lordship's Memoirs of the Life of Mr. Pitt, vol. -2, 
p. 400, occurs the following passage : 

" A petition had been presented to the House cf Commons, 
" on the 7th of May, 1789, by certain persons calling them- 
" selves catholic dissenters, implying by that title, that they 
" did not believe all the tenets generally maintained by roman- 
" catholics. The petitioners stated, that they and other pa- 
" pists were subject to various penal laws, on account of prin- 
" ciples, which they were supposed to entertain, dangerous to 
" society, and totally repugnant to political and civil liberty, 
" and therefore they thought it due to their country and to 
" themselves publicly to disclaim and protest against the five 
" following doctrines : — 1. That princes excommunicated by 
" the pope, or by any authority of the see of Rome, may be de- 



X.] ROMAN-CATHOLICS. 1 1 7 

" posed or murdered by their sabjects or other persons: — 2. 
" That implicit obedience is due to the orders and decrees of 
" popes and general councils, even if they require open resist- 
" ance to government, the subversion of the laws and liberties 
''of the country, and the extermination of all persons not pro- 
" fessing the roman-catholic religion : — 3. That the pope, by 
" his spiritual power, can dispense with the obligation of any 
'' compact or oath : — 4. That not only the pope, but even a 
'' priest has power, at his will and pleasure, to pardon sins, 
^' and, consequently, can absolve from the guilt of perjury, re- 
" hellion and high treason:— 5. That faith is not to be kept 
'' with heretics."* 

" Allow me to observe, my lord, that the account given above, 
so far from being accurate, contains a gross misrepresentation, 
which, from respect to your lordship, I am willing to believe is 
not a wilful one. It is true, that the petitioners in 1789 styled 
themselves catholic dissenters. It is equally true, that many 
catholics objected to the title assumed by the petitioners; and 
for this reason, that they conceived the term dissenters to be 
appropriate to those who deserted the antient faith in the six- 
teenth century, not to such as were inheritors of it in the pre- 
sent times. But no thinking man before your lordship ever in- 
smuated, that the petitioners were dissenters from other catho- 
lics, in respect to the doctrines against which they protested. 
" Neither did the petitioners insinuate, that the tenets which 
they disclaimed were maintained by any other catholics 
whomsoever : They knew indeed that such tenets had been 
imputed to other catholics, as well as to themselves ; but as 

* " These five doctrines are to be found in the decrees of councils, and 
" other authentic documents of the church of Rome, and have always 
" been considered as forming part of the faith of papists.'* tN*ote in the 
Bishop's Life of Mr, Pitt. 



118 CHARGES AGAINST [Letter 

they were petitioning for themselves only, they confined the 
disclaimer to themselves. 

" It is not, however, of these inaccuracies, but of the note 
which follows them, that the catholics chiefly complain.* The 
statement in that note is not only erroneous in point of fact, 
but is calculated to make on the public mind an impression 
most injurious to their interests, by representing them as mem- 
bers of a church which inculcates, "as part of its faith," doc- 
trines subversive of civil allegiance and moral duty; doctrines 
not to be tolerated by any government, nor in any society. On 
what this representation may be grounded, few readers of the 
Memoirs will stay to inquire ; they will adopt it as true on 
the authority of the writer. 

"The catholics deny that the five doctrines in question ever 
formed part of their faith. They challenge your lordship to 
prove your assertion ; they call on you to produce, if you can, 
"the decrees of councils, and the authentic documents of the 
" church of Rome, in which they are to be found." If you 
cannot, they trust you will h^ve the courage to come forward, 
and with the honesty of a man, and the charity of a christian, 
acknowledge that you have been misled. 

"Your lordship says, that "these five doctrines have always 
" been considered as forming part of the faith of papists;" but 
by whom ? — by catholics ? Most certainly not ; they have al- 
ways disclaimed them. By their adversaries ? But you must 
be aware that little credit is due to adversaries, especially when 
the passions of those adversaries have been heated, and their 
judgments warped, by theological controversy. 

"But what is the meaning of the words " have always been ?" 
They seem to imply, that the doctrines in question were not 
only considered ybr/TierZt/, but are also considered woi(?, as mak- 

* See note quoted in preceding page. 



X.] ROMAN CATHOLICS. 119 

ing part of the catholic faith. It is however impossible that 
so unfounded a notion can exist at the present day. Your 
lordship cannot be ignorant, that, in 1788, the catholic univer- 
sities of Lou vain, Douay, Paris, Alcala, Valladolid and Sala- 
manca, when those learned bodies were consulted to satisfy 
Mr. Pitt, spurned the imputation as most foul, false and calum- 
nious. You cannot be ignorant that, in 1791, Pius YL, in his 
letter to the roman-catholic archbishops of Ireland, not only 
condemned these doctrines, but declared that they had been 
imputed to the holy see merely for the purpose of calumniating 
it.* You cannot be ignorant, that the British and Irish catho- 
lics seized the first opportunity, which was offered to them, of 
disclaiming such doctrines upon oath. You cannot be igno- 
rant, that that very oath had been prescribed by the legislature, 
as satisfactory evidence of the religious principles of those 
who should take it. What better proof can be desired or de- 
vised ? The declaration of the chief bishop of the catholic 
church, the testimony of the catholic universities, the oaths of 
the catholics, both laity and clergy, of the united kingdom, 
and the authority of the legislature, all combine to show, that 
these five doctrines form no part of the catholic faith. Cer- 
tainly the most obstinate prejudice must yield to evidence so 
general and conclusive. 

" I have the honor to be, &c. 
"London, June 12, 1821. A Catholmj.'' 

*See substance of Sir John Cox Hippesley's speech, May 18, 1810. 
Appendix. 



120 RISE OF [Letter 



LETTER XL 

RISE OF THE REFORMATION TliE MENDICANT ORDERS 

PERSECUTION UNDER THE HOUSE OF LANCASTER. 

Sm, 

You have now reached a subject, upon which I wish you 
had given us a volume, instead of a chapter,- — the prelimina- 
ries of Luther's reformation. In Germany, they are often 
styled Reformatio ante Reformationein, It is intimated, in the 
preface to Beausobre's " History of the Reformation," that he 
had written a work on this subject: I have made many inqui- 
ries for it, both in the London and the foreign markets, without 
success. A good account of this portion of ecclesiastical his- 
tory is one of the greatest wants of literature. 

It is known, that, on the death of Manes, the founder of the 
heresy w^hich derives its origin and name from him, his Euro- 
pean folio w^ers retreated into the East; that they returned into 
Europe about the beginning of the ninth century ; and, during 
that and the following centuries, spread themselves, under the 
various appellations of Cathari, Paulicians, Albigenses, Popelli- 
cans, Bogards, and Brethren of the Free Spirit, into several 
sects, equally hostile to church and state. 



On the religious tenets of the ancient Manichees, Beausobre 
* Hietoire Critique de Manichee ?t do Manicheismej 2 vols. 4to. 



XL] LOLLARDS. 121 

doctor Lardner,^ and Mr. Alban Butler,t have left us nothing 
to desire. But, in respect to their tenets on civil power and 
property, these authors are almost entirely silent. The reli- 
gious tenets of the Manichean sectaries, in the middle ages, 
have been ably discussed by Bossuet,J father Persons||, Mr. Al- 
ban Butler,§ and Basnage ;ir but these writers have said little 
on their political tenets. I beg leave to mention, that those, 
who desire to investigate this subject, should consult Monetce 
adversus Catharos et Valdenses^ libri quinqiie^ fol. Romce^ 
1743. 

I wish you to undertake this investigation ; but I fear you 
could not complete it, in the manner you and your friends 
would wish, without ransacking foreign libraries. The great 
point for investigation is, whether these sectaries did not, by 
their disorganizing tenets, prelude to the doctrine of liberty and 
equality, so frightfully propagated in our time ? 



XL 1. 

Rise of the Reformation — Persecution under the House of 

Lancaster. 

When I inserted, in my " Historical Memoirs of the Eng- 
" lish, Irish, and Scottish Catholics," an account of " the pre- 
^' liminaries of the reformation."** I gave to the subject all the 

♦ Credibility of the Gospel History, xliii. 
t Note in his Life of St. Augustine. 

I Variations, livre xii. 

II Three Conversions of England, part iii. c. 3, 6. - 
§ Note in his Life of St. Dominick. 

II Hist, des Eglises Reformees, 2 vols. 4 to. 
»*Vol. l,p. 93. 
11 



^ 



122 LOLLARDS. [Letter 

attention, and made every research, that the time, which I could 
bestow upon it, allowed. 1 have frequently reconsidered this 
part of my work, and have not discovered any thing which ap- 
pears to me to require alteration. 

I shall, therefore, now re-state whatl have inserted in that 
work, — the opinion of Mosheim,* that, " before the Reforma- 
" tion, there lay concealed, in almost every part of Europe, 
" particularly in Bohemia^ Moravia, Switzerland and Germany, 
" many persons who adhered tenaciously to the following doc- 
" trine, which the Waldenses, Wickliffites, and Hussites, had 
" maintained ; some in a disguised, others in a more open and 
" public manner : — that the kingdom of Christ was an assem- 
" bly of true and real saints, and ought, therefore, to be inac- 
" cessible to the wicked and unrighteous, and also, exempt 
" from those institutions which human prudence suggests, to 
" oppose the progress of iniquity, or to correct or reform trans- 
'^ gressions." 

" From these principles they inferred, that all things ought 
'' to be in common among the faithful ; that taking interest for 
" the loan of money ought to be entirely abolished ; that, in the 
" kingdom of Christ, civil magistrates were absolutely useless; 
" and that God still continued to reveal his will to chosen men.'^ 
In a future part of this letter, I shall transcribe, from the chap- 
ter of your work which is the subject of this letter, passages 
which completely accord with that which I have cited from 
Mosheim. 

Such were the principles of these sectaries. How did they 
carry them into execution f Confining the answer to the Eng- 
lish Lollards, — What insurrections, what rapine, what murders, 

'•'Cent. xvi. c 3, 5, 2, 5. 



XL] LOLLARDS. 123 

were produced by them ! They murdered the chancellor, and 
primate, Sudbury; the lord treasurer Hales; the chief justice 
Cavendish : They sought to murder the king; to exterminate 
the nobility, the dignitaries, and the principal functionaries of 
the clergy. " The celebrated John Ball,'' says Walsingham,* 
" taught the perverse dogmas, and false opinions, and raving 
'' doctrines of WicklifFe. Being, upon this account, prohibited 
" by his bishop from preaching in the churches, he went to vil- 
" lages and towns to preach to them. He v/as excommuni- 
" cated : but ventured to preach, and was sent to prison, where 
"he announced his immediate delivery by 20,000 men. This 
" actually happened ; and, having deliberated with them, he 
" headed them, instigating them to greater enormities. At 
" Blackheath, where 20,000 men were assembled, he thus be- 
" gan his address to them : 

" When Adam delv'd, and Eve span 
" Who was then the gentleman ? 

" They fixed placards on the doors of the churches of London, 
" announcing that they were ready, to the number of 100,000, 
" to rise against all who did not relish them. To this they 
" were invited by the power and contrivance of one John Old- 
" castle." In the following year they endeavoured to raise a 
rebellion in St. Giles' Fields, where Oldcastle had appointed 
them to rendezvous. Seditious proceedings of a similar nature 
took place, about the same time, in different parts of England. 

The Albigenses, in the south of France, exceeded the Lol- 
lards, both in the wildness of their doctrine, and the ferocity of 
their proceedings. 

Such, then, were the principles of the sectarians, and such 
the enormities to which they led. You yourself admit, that 
Wickliffe held " some erroneous opinions, some fantastic ones, 

* Walsingham, p. 275, 223, 385. 



124 LOLLARDS. [Letter 

" and some that, in their moral and political consequences, 
" were most dangerous." (We have just seen what Walsing- 
ham says of Wickliffe and his doctrines.) Is it not surprising 
that, almost in the line immediately following, you call him " a 
" great and admirable man." Is not this exaggerated eulogy ? 
Should a man be pronounced great and admirable, some of 
whose opinions are admitted to have been " erroneous," some 
to have been " fantastic," some to have been " most danger- 
ous ?" Should it be done in this age, where liberty and equali- 
ty, in the disorganizing sense of those words, are so loudly 
called for, and the loudness of the call increases every day ? 
In respect to the tenets of the Lollards, I beg leave to ask, if 
contemporary writers do not unanimously declare, that they 
originated with Wickliffe ? Should you not have mentioned 
with praise, the christian spirit and forbearance of the clergy 
of those times, who, although he had so vehemently attacked 
both their doctrines and their possessions, permitted him to 
spend his last days in peace and privacy ? 

I have shortly mentioned the dreadful effects produced by 
these dangerous opinions. To prevent them from spreading, 
the legislature, in the reign of Henry IV. had passed the statute 
de Hceretico comhurendo : It authorized the bishop to proceed 
against heretics, and to punish them by imprisonment, and fine 
to the king; and enacted, that if they should refuse to abjure 
their heretical pravity, or, after their abjuration, should relapse 
into it, they should be delivered to the sheriff, and burned on 
a high place, before the people. This statute was succeeded 
by others. You cannot condemn these legislative proceedings 
more than 1 do : they were an infraction of the rights of con- 
science ; they made religious opinion a test of political princi- 
ple ; and thus confounded principle, with which the legislature 
has no concern, with action, its only proper object. 



XI.] LOLLARDS. 125 

Under these statutes many suffered. Your account of their 
sufferings is drawn with admirable eloquence and feeling. 

I sympathize in what you write : and trust that, when I shall 
hereafter mention the sufferings of the roman-catholics, under 
the reigns of Henry VIIL Edward VL Elizabeth, and the three 
first princes of the Stuart line, you will read those pages with 
equal sympathy. 

Before I close my letter, I beg leave to express some surprise 
at the tenderness with which you treat Sir John Oldcastle, oft- 
en called Lord Cobham. You describe him as a victim ; and, 
when you come to his final catastrophe, you tell us, that " the 
" remainder of his history is perplexed by contradictory state- 
" ments, from which nothing certain can be collected, but the 
" last results." Is this so ? Had not his practices with the 
Lollards, in their most revolutionary designs, and his encour- 
agement of them, been discovered ? Had he not defied the pro- 
cess of the spiritual courts } Had not Henry V. declared in 
his proclamation, that the Lollards meant to destroy him, his 
brothers, and several of the spiritual and temporal lords ? to 
confiscate the possessions of the church; to secularize the re- 
ligious orders; to divide the realm into confederate districts; 
and to appoint Sir John Oldcastle president of the common- 
wealth ? On his arraignment, did he venture to assert his inno- 
cence ? Did he not deny the king's tide to the crown ? Did 
not the sentence pronounced upon him, declare, that he should 
both be hanged as a traitor, and burned as a heretic ? It is al- 
most ridiculous to ask, — did he not impiously prophecy, that 
he should rise on the third day } Surely you do not concur 
Avith a notorious writer, whom you often praise, John Fox, the 
martyrologist, who ranks several of these convicted rebels 
among his saints ? 

If it were allowed by the proper limits of these Letters, J 
11* 



J26 LOLLARDS. [Letter 

should have offered you some considerations on the Waldenses, 
Albigenses, and the Hussites; on some decrees of the council 
of Constance; and on the inquisition, with which the subject 
is connected. I have expressed myself fully qn all these top- 
ples, in the chapter of my Historical Memoirs on the Prelimi- 
naries of the Reformation.* It was written with care, and I 
trust with impartiality : 1 beg leave to refer you to it. 

In one part of your present chapter, you inform us, "that 
" indignation against spiritual tyranny, uncompromising since- 
" rity, and intrepid zeal, made the Lollards formidable to the 
" hierarchy." Most protestant writers describe them in the 
same tone of lofty eulogy; but do they convey the whole truth? 
How do you yourself afterwards describe them in this very 
chapter ? 

" Undoubtedly the Lollards," say you, " were highly dan- 
" gerous at this time : if there were some among therp, whose 
" view and wishes did not go beyond a just and salutary re- 
" formation, the greater number were eager for havoc, and held 
" opinions which were incompatible with the peace of society. 
" They would have stript the monasteries ; confiscated the 
" church lands; and proclaimed the principle, Hhat the saints 
" should possess the earth.' The public safety required, that 
" such opinions should be repressed; and, founded, as they 
" were, in gross error, and leading to direct and enormous evil, 
" the church would have deserved the approbation of impartial 
" posterity, if it had proceeded temperately and justly in repress- 
" ing them. But the course which the church pursued, was 
" equally impolitic and iniquitous, by making transubstantia- 
" tion the test of heresy; and insisting, on pain of the stake, 
" upon the belief of a proposition, which no man could believe, 
" unless he disregarded the evidence of his senses; they gave 

*VoI. l,c. 10. 



XL] RELIGIOUS ORDERS. 1^7 

" the Lollards all the advantage, which men derive from the 
" reputation and the merit of suffering in the cause of truth." 

In this sentence, I cannot but dislike the manner in which 
you mention transubstantiation ; and believing, that, on the 
occasions of which you are speaking, the judges frequently 
acted from errors of judgment, or in moments of exaltation, I 
wish you had substituted some other word for " iniquitous :" — 
With these exceptions, I subscribe to it in all parts. 

But permit me to observe, that you cannot criminate the 
judges, who condemned the Lollards for not believing transub- 
stantiation, without condemning the laws, which, in subsequent 
times, condemned the catholics for believing it, or conforming 
to those religious rites, which they found established, and 
which had made a part of the constitution, both of the church 
and state, of England, from the earliest introduction of Chris- 
tianity till their own time. I shall advert to this circumstance 
in a future letter. When you read it, you will, I hope, join 
me in a tear of sympathy on the sufferings, both of the priests 
and their flocks, for their belief of transubstantiation. Even 
now, do you not sympathize with the roman-catholic peers, 
the Howards, the Talbots, the Stourtons, the Arundells, the 
Cliffords, and the Petres, who, in consequence of their belief of 
transubstantiation, are deprived of their hereditary seats in Par- 
liament ? 

XL 2. 

The Mendicant and other Religious Orders of the Roman 

Catholic Church. 

In your perusal of the gospel, you must have remarked 
the words, " If thou desire to be perfect, go, and sell all thou 
'^ hast, and give it to the poor."* — '' If any man come after me, 

♦Mattxix. 



128 RELIGIOUS ORDERS. [Letter 

" let him deny himself."^ — " It is a good thing not to touch a 
" woman."" — " He who gives his virgin in marriage does well, 
" but he who gives her not does better." — Is it not with jus- 
tice that the roman-catholic church considers these intimations, 
not as precepts, the observance of which is necessary to salva- 
tion, but as counsels to those, who, to use the words of Christ 
himself, desire to be perfect ? Do they not imply, that a volun- 
tary renunciation of riches, a voluntary renunciation of our 
will, and a voluntary renunciation of sensual, but lawful plea- 
sure, are acceptable to God ? Do we not imitate, by the first, 
the voluntary poverty of our holy Redeemer ? — by the second, 
his voluntary obedience to the will of his Eternal Father, and 
to the will of his Virgin Mother ? — ^by the third, his immacu- 
late purity ? To this humble imitation of Christ, the mendicant 
and the other religious orders of the catholic church aspire ; 
and their different rules prescribe different modes, suited to the 
various characters and tempers of mankind, of carrying these 
councils into execution. In what age of the church were not 
such observances practised ? In what, have they not been 
praised by the wise and the good ? 

The services, which the Benedictines have rendered to reli- 
gion and literature, are mentioned by an author, not unknown 
to you, in terms, which I am delighted to read, and which I 
shall transcribe with pleasure in the fifteenth of these Letters. 

In the eighth century, certain respectable ecclesiastics form- 
ed themselves into a kind of middle order, between the monks 
and the secular clergy, and, by degrees, obtained the appella- 
tion of the regular canons of St, Augustine^ from their observ- 
ance of the rules and suggestions laid down by that great man 
in his Epistles. They kept public schools for the instruction 
of youth, and exercised themselves in a variety of functions, 
which rendered them extremely useful to the church. 

» Matt. xvi. 



XL] RELIGIOUS ORDERS, 129 

For many ages, the Benedictines, and the congregations 
which emanated from them, and the canons regulars of St. Au- 
gustine, constituted the only religious orders in the West ; but, 
in the twelfth century, the mendicant orders arose : these were 
the Franciscans, the Dominicans, the Carmelites, and the her- 
mits of St. Augustine. You confine your vituperations to the 
Franciscans and the Dominicans ; 1 shall, therefore, say no- 
thing of the two other mendicant orders. 

As to the Franciscans^ — let me conjure you to collect the 
testimony, not of the ribald press, not of supei-ficial travellers, 
not of philosophic witlings, but of impartial, intelligent, and 
honourable men ; and, I beg leave to add, of the catholic pre- 
lacy ; for, after all, these fonn the best tribunal to which the 
question can be referred. Ask these, what they thought of the 
friars ? They will answer unanimously, — that their services to 
the church of God were incalculable ; that they chiefly exerted 
themselves in the laborious parts of the sacred ministr}^, in 
hospitals, in prisons, among the lower orders of the poor ; that 
wherever there was a fire, an inundation, a pestilential disor* 
der, a raging plague ; wherever there was labour, or danger, and 
a total absence of reward, the Franciscans were sure to be 
found. But it was not only in the humbler walks of the min- 
istry that they laboured : many were eminent for their learn- 
ing ; many filled the highest dignities of the church ; many 
were successfully employed in the most important embassies ; 
some have governed states ; some have worn the tiara. 

To this, what have you to oppose ? — Some legends and 
tales, which the friars laugh at as much as you do ; and some 
naiTatives, which eminent writers have thought respectable, al-. 
though you think of them differently. You deride the stigma^ 
ta : — it would give me great pleasure to hear the verity of them 
coolly and jirgumentatively discussed by you, and some learn- 



130 RELIGIOUS ORDERS. [Letter 

ed member of the seraphic order. I must assure you, that you 
would not find it so easy a matter, as you imagine, to nonplus 
him ; and that, if you had fought the battle with my late friend, 
father O^Leary, you might not have fared with him better than 
the bishop of Cloyne, who quarrelled with him about purgato- 
ry, and to whom he observed, that "his lordship might go far- 
" ther, and fare \^^se." 

Most of what I have said on the Franciscans applies to the 
Dominicans; but with this difference, — that these exerted 
themselves in a particular manner, in public preaching, and in 
teaching the philosophical and theological learning of the 
schools. You are one of the few, whom I can expect to find 
equal admirers, with myself, of the mental powers of ^S^. Tho- 
mas Jlquinas. Do I exaggerate, when I say, that his writings 
discover a strength of mind equal, (though applied in a very * 
different manner,) to that of Sir Isaac Newton ? Is there an ob- 
jection urged by Hume, against natural or revealed religion, 
which St. Thomas has not both propounded and answered? 
How pleasing would it be to dwell on such a topic ! — You 
charge St. Dominick with taking an active part in the esta- 
blishment of the inquisition. This is positively denied by 
Touron^ his best biographer ; and, I believe, by every other 
writer of his order. Their zealous denial of it does them hon- 
our : from its origin, till the close of the seventeenth century, 
the constitution and proceedings of that tribunal were very ob- 
jectionable. 

But, let us return to the religious orders. At different times, 
convents of nuns were founded : their institutes corresponded 
with those of the religious orders and congregations, which we 
have noticed. You are extensively acquainted with history, 
and have travelled in catholic countries ; you, therefore, know 
what thousands of these venerable Indies were employed in the 



XL] RELIGIOUS ORDERS. 131 

important duty of education : that, from an early aera of Chris- 
tianity till the present time, it has been an universal opinion, 
that no education for the female sex is equal to that which they 
receive in convents. You know the heroic exertions amon^ 
the poor, the sick, and the prisoners, of those angels upon earth, 
the sisters of charity ; and the pious lives and penitential aus- 
terities of the recluses. You also know, that, when the hour 
of trial came, the conduct of the nuns were uniformly edifying; 
on every occasion they exhibited the greatest patience, forti- 
tude, and adherence to principle. The French philosophers 
had unceasingly predicted, that the doors of the convents would 
no sooner be opened, and their inmates legally emancipated 
from their vows, than they would rush to freedom, marriage, 
and dissipation. Of this there was hardly an instance *, whilst 
the conduct of an immense number invariably showed, how 
sincerely they despised, both the blandishments and the terrors 
of the world which they had quitted. Some braved persecu- 
tion, and even death itself, in its most hideous form: On one 
occasion, the fatal cart conveyed the superior of a convent, and 
all her cloisteral family, to the guillotine : in the road to it they 
sung, in unison, the litanies of the Virgin Mary. At first, they 
were received with curses, ribaldry, and the other usual abomi- 
nations of a French mob ; but it was not long before the se- 
rene demeanor and pious chant of these heroic sufferers, sub- 
dued the surrounding brutality ; and the multitude attended 
them, in respectful silence, to the place of execution. — ^The 
cart moved slowly : all the while the nuns continued the pious 
strain : — when it had reached the guillotine, each, till the in- 
strument of death fell on her, sustained it. — As each died, the 
sound became proportionably weaker ; at last, the superior's 
single note was heard, and soon heard no more. For once, the 



13^ CANDID AVOAVALS [Letter 

French mob was affected: in silence, and apparently with some 
compunctious visitations, they returned to their homes. 

Throughout their dispersion, the nuns retained, undiminish- 
ed, their attachments to their religious rule ; whenever oppor- 
tunity offered, they formed themselves into bands for its ob- 
servance, and the insulated individual seldom failed to practice 
it to the utmost of her power. Sometimes, by succession, or 
heirship, or by some other circumstance, wealth came in their 
way ; but their spare diet, their seclusion from the world, and 
regular prayer continued; and what was not necessary to sup- 
ply their wants of the first necessity, was charitably distributed. 
Was it not good for a nation, that such celestial beings should 
reside amons: them ? 



In this stage of our controversy, it may not be improper ta 
make what, in mercantile transactions, is termed a rest ; and 
thus show, as it were on a balance sheet which side, in the ac- 
tual state of the account between us, has the preponderance. 
You sum your charge in these words : " The church of Rome 
" appears to have delighted in abusing the credibility of man- 
" kind, and to have pleased itself with dis covering, how far it 
" was possible to subdue and degrade the human intellect, as 
" an eastern despot measures his own greatness by the servile 
" prostration of his subjects." 

In the beginning of the chapter which contains this sentence, 
you inform your readers, that " the corruptions, doctrinal and 
" practical, of the roman church, were studiously kept out of 
" view by the writers, who still maintain the infallibility of that 
^ church." 



XL] OF ROMAN-CATHOLICS. 133 

x4Lre you, then, acquainted with no writers in the middle ages, 
who, at the same time that they maintained the infallibility of 
the roman-catholic church in matters of faith, exposed, in the 
strongest terms, and the most unequivocal language, the cor- 
ruptions which had found their way into her, and even into 
her sanctuary ? Are you ignorant of the discourses published, 
and of the sermons preached, at the council of Constance, Ba- 
sil and Pisa? — of the writings of Grossetete, Gersen, d'Ailly, 
and the many other ecclesiastical personages, whose treatises, 
exposing the extortions of the roman see and its officers, and 
the irregularities of the clergy, jfill the two well-known vo- 
lumes of " BrownPs Fasciculus V^ Is the letter of St. Bernard 
to pope Eugenius IV. unknown to you ? Does it not announce, 
in the boldest language, and with the most glowing eloquence, 
the failings of the popes, and their functionaries, and all the 
corrupt practices which then existed in the church ? Was not 
this letter transcribed, and read, and admired, in every part of 
Christendom ? 

Descending lower, let me request you to peruse the follow- 
ing long extract from a later work, — a work, not written in a 
corner, — ^nor put into the hands of a few, — but written by the 
eagle of Meaux; anxiously circulated in every part of the 
globe, and particularly addressed to protestants, and designed 
for their perusal, — I mean, " the History of the Variations of 
the Protestant Churches^'''' by Bossuet. I shall present you 
with a translation of the first section of this great work. After 
perusing it, will you venture to repeat, that the roman-catholic 
writers, who maintain the infallibility oi their church, keep its 
corruptions out of view ? Or that the church, whose writers 
thus detail the corruptions in her, either sought, or seeks, to 
subdue or degrade her subjects, or to prostrate their intel- 
lects ^ 

12 



134 CANDID AVOWALS [Letter 

"A reformation of church discipline," says Bossuet, "was 
" wished for several ages since. ' Who will grant me,' cried 
" St. Bernard, ' to see, before I die^ the church of God^ such as 
" she was in primitive times ?'* If this holy man had any thing 
'^ to regret at his death, it was, that he had not seen so happy 
" a change. His whole life long he bemoaned the grievances 
" of the church ; he never ceased giving notice of them to the 
" people, the clergy, the bishops, and popes themselves : Nor 
" did he conceal his sentiments, on this head, from his own 
" religious, who partook .of his afflictions in their solitude ; 
" and so much the more gratefully extolled the divine good- 
" ness, which had drawn them to it, as the world was more 
" universally corrupted. Disorders had but augmented since 
" that time. The roman church, the mother of churches, 
" which had, for nine whole ages, by setting first the example 
" of an exact observance of ecclesiastical discipline, maintained 
" it, throughout the universe, to her utmost power, was not 
" exempt from evil ; and so long since as the council of Vi- 
" ewne, a great prelate, commissioned by the pope to prepare 
'' matters to be treated upon, laid it down for a groundwork to 
" the whole assembly^ that they ought to reform the church in 
" the head and memlers. The great schism, which happened 
" soon after, made his saying current, not among particular 
'^ doctors only, as Gersen^ Peter d'^Mlly^ and other great men 
'' of those times, but in councils too ; and nothing was more 
" frequently repeated, in those of Pisa and Constance. What 
" happened in the council of Basil, where a reformation was 
" unfortunately eluded, and the church re-involved in new di- 
" visions, is well known. The disorders of the clergy, chiefly 
'• of those in Germany, were represented in this manner, to 
'^ Eugenius IV. by cardinal Julian : ^ These disorders^'' said he, 

♦Bern. Epist. 257, ad Eug. Papam. 



XL] OF ROMAN-CATHOLICS. 135 

" ' excite the peopW^s hatred against the whole ecclesiastical or- 
" der ; and^ should they not he corrected^' it is to he feared^ lest 
" the laity ^ like the Hussites^ fall foul on the clergy^ as they 
" loudly threaten us? If the clergy of Germany were not 
" speedily reformed, he foretold, that to the heresy of Bohe- 
" raia, even though it were extinguished^ another still more dan- 
" gerous would soon succeed ; 'for it will he said^'' proceeded 
" he, ' that the clergy are incorrigible^ and icill apply no reme- 
" dy to these disorders. When they shall find no hopes of our 
" amendment^'^ continued this great cardinal, ' then will they 
" fa^^ fo^^ upon us. The minds of men are lig with expec- 
" tations of lohat measures ivill be taken; and full ripe they 
" seem for something tragical ! The rancour they have im- 
" bibed against us becomes manifest ; they will soon think it an 
'• agreeable sacrifice to God^ to plunder and abuse ecclesias- 
'' tics^ as abandoned to extreme disorder^ and hateful to God 
" and man ; the present^ but small^ remains of respect to the 
" sacred order^ will shortly be quite extinguished. The blame 
" of all these abuses will be thrown on the court of Rome 
" which will be reckoned the sole cause thereof because it had? 
" neglected to apply the necessary remedy.' He afterwards 
'' spoke more emphatically: '/see,' said he, 'the axe is at the 
" root ; the tree begins to bend^ and instead of propping it^ 
" whilst we may^ we hasten its fall.^ He foresees a speedy de- 
" solation in the German clergy. The desire of taking from 
" them their temporal goods was to be the first spring of motion. 
" ' Bodies and souls^'' says he, ' will perish together. God hides 
" from us the prospect of our danger^ as he is used to do with 
" those he designs to punish. We see the fire enkindled before 
" M5, and yet run headlong into it."** 

*Ep. 1, Juliani Cardinalis, ad Eug. iv. int. Opusc. ^neae Silvii, p. 
66, 68, 76. 



136 CANDID AVOWALS [Letter 

"Thus did this cardinal^ the greatest man of his time, la- 
" ment, in the fifteenth century, the abuses of those days, and 
" foresee their dreadful consequences; whereby he seems to 
" have foretold those evils, in which Luther was just going to 
" involve all Christendom, beginning by Germany. Nor was 
" he mistaken, when he foretold, that a despised reformation f 
'^ and redoubled hatred against the clergy, would speedily bring 
" forth a sect more terrible to the church, than that of the Bo^ 
" hemians. Under Luther's banner did this sect appear ; and, 
" assuming the title of reformers^ glorified they had fulfilled all 
" Christendom's desires, inasmuch as a reformation had been 
" long the desire of catholics, people, doctors, and prelates. 
" In order, therefore, to authorize this pretended reformation^ 
" whatsoever church-writers had said against the disorders, 
" both of the people, and even of the clergy, was collected with 
" great industry ; but in this lay a manifest conceit, there not 
" being so much as one of all the passages alleged, wherein 
" those doctors ever dreamt of altering the church's faith ; of 
" correcting her worship, which chiefly consisted in the sacri- 
" fice of the altar ; of subverting the authority of her prelates, 
" that of the pope especially, — the very scope which this whole 
" reformation, introduced by Luther, tended to. 

" Protestants cite to us St. Bernard,* who, enumerating the 
" church grievances, — all those she underwent in the beginning 
'^ during the persecutions ; those she suflfered from heresies in 
'' her progress ; and those she was exposed unto, in latter days, 
'^ by the depravation of manners, — allows these to be far more 
" dreadful, because they taint the very vitals, and spread infec- 
" tion through all the members of the church. Whence, con- 
'' eludes this great man, the church may truly say, with Isaiah,^ 

*Bern. Serm. 33, in Cant, 
t Isaiah, xxxviii. 



XL] OF ROMAN-CATHOLICS. 137 

" ' her most painful and most grievous hitterness is in peace? 
^ When left in peace by infidels^ and unmolested by heretics^ 
" she is most dangerously assaulted by the depraved manners 
^' of her own children. Even this were enough to show, he 
" does not, like our reformers^hewail the errors the church had 
" fallen into, (on the contrary, he represents her as secure on 
"that side,) but such evils only as proceeded from relaxed dis- 
'' cipline ; accordingly, when, instead of discipline^ the church's 
" dogmata were attacked by turbulent and restless men, such 
" as Peter de Br ids ^ as Henry ^ as Arnold of Bresse^ this great 
" man would never suffer their weakening so much as one of 
" them, but fought invincibly, as well for the faith of the churchy 
" as for the authority of her prelates.* 

" The case is the same with the rest of the catholic doctors, 
" who, in the succeeding ages, lamented abuses, and demand- 
" ed a reformation of them. Of all these, the most renowned 
'^ is Gersen ; and none more loudly called for it in the church's 
" head and members. In a sermon he made after the council 
" of Pisa, before Alexander V., he introduces the church, re- 
" questing of the pope the reformation, and a re-establishment 
" of the kingdom, of Israel, But, to show he complained of no 
" error that could be observed in the church's doctrine, he ad- 
" dresses the pope in these words: — ' Why^^ says he, ' do you 
" not send to the Indians, whose faith may easily have been 
" corrupted, they not being united to the church of Rome, 
" whence certainty of faith must be derived? '| His master, 
" cardinal Peter d^lilly^ sighed also for a reformation ; but the 
" principle he went upon was far different from that of Luther^ 
" who, writing to Mclancthon^ gives it for a maxim, ' that sound 
" doctrine could not subsist whilst the pope'^s authority subsist-i 

* Bern. Serm. in Cant. 65, 66. 
t Gers. Serm. de Ascensu Dom. ad Al. V, 
J2* 



138 CANDID AVOWALS [Letter 

" ed ;'* whereas this cardinal was of opinion,! tJiat the mem-- 
" bers of the churchy being separated from their head during 
'' the schism^ and there being no administrator and apostolical 
'' director^ namely, no pope^ that all the church acknovdedged^ 
" it was not to be hoped that a reformation could be well brought 
'' about. Thus, one made the reformation to depend on the 
'' subversion of papacy ; the other, on the perfect re-setting of 
'' that sacred authority^ which was established by Jesus Christy 
" on purpose to keep up unity among its members, and with- 
" hold all in their secular duties. 

"There were then two different sorts of people, who de- 
" manded a reformation : One, the truly peaceable, and true 
" children of the church, without bitterness, bewailed her 
" grievances*, and with respect, proposed a reformation of them, 
'^ and in humility bore with a delay. And so far from desiring 
^' that this might be procured by schism ; on the contrary, they 
" looked upon a schism by far the greatest of all evils. In the 
" midst of these abuses, they admired the providence of God, 
" who, according to his promises, knew how to preserve the 
" church's faith ; and though a reformation of manners seemed 
" denied them, free from all sourness and passion, they held 
'' themselves happy enough, that nothing hindered them from 
" beginning at home, and perfectly reforming there. These 
"^ were the strong ones of the church, whose faith no tempta- 
" tion could shake, or make them swerve from unity. There 
'' was, besides these, a kind of proud spirits, full fraught with 
" spleen and bitterness, who, struck with the disorders they 
" saw predominant in the churchy especially in her ministers., 
'' did not believe the promises of her eternal duration could still 
" subsist amidst such abuses; whereas the Son of God had 

* Sleid, lib. vii. fol. 112. 
t Con. 1, de San. Lud. 



XL] OF ROMAN-CATHOLICS. 139 

" taught respect to the chair of MoseSj notwithstanding the 
" evil actions of the scribes and jjharisees that sat therein* 
" These became proud, and thereby weak ; they yielded to the 
'' temptation which, in hatred to those that preside in it, inclines 
'' to hate the chair itself. And, as if man's wickedness could 
'' make void the work of God, the aversion they had conceiv- 
" ed against the teachers^ made them both hate the doctrine 
'' they taught, and the authority they had received from God to 
'-' teach: Such were the Vandois and Jllbigenses ; such were 
'' John Wickliff and John Huss, The common lure, by which 
" they enticed weak souls into their toils, was this hatred they 
" inspired them with against church pastors. And this spirit 
^' of bitterness had so thoroughly bent them on a rupture, that 
" no wonder if, in Luther^s time, when invectives and animo- 
" sities were carried to the highest pitch, the most violent rup- 
" ture, and the greatest apostacy, of course, ensued, that per- 
'' chance, till then, ever had been seen in Christendom." 

I could have translated, or transcribed, many passages from 
other distinguished writers of our church, in which the exist- 
ence and extent of abuses in the roman-catholic church are 
mentioned, in terms equally strong and explicit. I have pre- 
ferred that which I have selected, on account of the high cha- 
racter of its author ; and because, while it abundantly refutes 
your charge against the roman-catholic church, of concealing 
her abuses, it propounds, in the clearest terms, the catholic doc- 
trine respecting her infallibility. We admit, that individual 
members of our church may both err in faith, and be guilty of 
immorality ; but we also assert, that the church cannot err in 
faith : this infallibility, and this infallibility only, we ascribe to 
her. I must add, that this celebrated work of Bossuet, on the 

*Matt. xxiii. 2,3. 



140 CANDID AVOWALS [Letter 

Variations of the Protestant Churches, from which I have pre- 
sented you with the foregoing extract, was translated into the 
English language, by father Browne, of the Society of Jesus, for 
the instruction of the English catholics, in 1742, in two octa-. 
vo volumes : so little do catholics deserve the imputation of 
concealment, with which you so liberally charge them. 

After perusing the full and unreserved exposure, by one of 
the most eminent and most popular writers of the church of 
Rome, of the abuses which prevailed in her during the middle 
ages, you will not, I am sure, renew this charge. 

But, while you dilate so much at length, and with such evi- 
dent complacency, on the circumstances which you think dis- 
grace the church of Rome, did not justice require you to place, 
in as full a view, and to dwell as much, and as long, on those 
topics, which are honourable to her ? You mention some su- 
perstitions : Why are you almost wholly silent on the edifying 
scenes, with which the history of the church, during the mid- 
dle ages, is replete ? the numerous councils held in every part 
of Christendom ? their admirable canons ? their regulations for 
preserving the purity and integrity of faith; for promoting, in 
every possible manner, both the spiritual and temporal welfare 
of mankind? You mention some persons, whose conduct you 
deservedly censure : Why did you not also mention some, at 
least, of those holy men, whose heroic virtues you yourself 
cannot deny ? You mention some ridiculous legends : Why 
are you wholly silent on the writings of the Gerberts, the Ber- 
nards, the Aquinases, the Gersens, the Bacons ? Why not 
mention Thomas a Kempis's golden volume ? or Thaulerus, 
of whom Luther, your patriarth, speaks in such lofty terms of 
praise } Why conceal the many institutions for the redemption 
of captives, and for the conversion of barbarians, with which 
the catholic church abounded in the times, which you so much 



XL] OF ROMAN-CATHOLICS. 141 

vituperate ? her various charitable institutions ; her schools ? 
the countless exertions of individuals for these, and a hundred 
other purposes of christian piety or beneficence ? Should not 
all and everyone of these hold their due place in a work, which 
bears for its title '^ the Book of the Church ?" Where is that 
good taste, for which you are deservedly admired, when, turn- 
ing aside from these pleasing and glorious themes, — from vir- 
tues that do honor to man, and the relations of which are so 
productive of useful and heroic deeds, you luxuriate in the des- 
criptions of those scenes, which Christianity laments, repudi- 
ates, and wishes to be forgotten ? But God never abandoned 
for a moment his church. Involve and involve again her dis- 
asters : — ^Make the tares as abundant as you wish them to be 
ihought, still there never was a time in which the faith of the 
church suffered corruption; or in which the promises of God 
to his church were not verified, by the richness and plenty of 
her harvests. 



142 EFFECTS OF [Letter 



LETTER XII. 



HENRY VIII. 



Sir, 

We now reach the aera of the Reformation : to you, a sub- 
ject of great joy; to me, a subject of deep regret. You dedi- 
cate your twelfth chapter to its commeneement under Henry 
VIII. 

It is one of the misfortunes of controversy, that charges, even 
of the most serious and offensive kind, may be conveyed in a 
line, or even by a word, while pages are necessary to refute 
them. With charges of this nature " the Book of the Church" 
abounds in a greater degree than any other work which I have 
met with; they occur in the present chapter more than in any 
other. All, or even a considerable proportion of them, it is utter- 
ly impossible for me to discuss ; I am therefore obliged to con- 
fine myself to such of your general charges against us, as ap- 
pear to me to require particular notice. 

Has England been benefitted by the reformation ? This is 
the subject of the letter which I now have the honour to ad- 
dress you. 1 shall enquire whether she has gained by it, — I. In 
temporal happiness; II. In spiritual wisdom ; — I H. Or in morals? 
— IV. Whether the revival of letters was owing to the reforma- 



XII.] THE REFORMATION. 143 

tion, or materially promoted by it ? — V. Whether the conduct 
of the religious orders called &r the dissolution of the monas- 
teries ? — VI. Whether the church of Rome was negligent in 
remedying the abuses which crept into it ? — VII. And whether 
roman-catholic historical writers of the former, or the present 
times, merit the indiscriminate and unqualified abuse, which, 
certainly, without any provocation, you pour upon them. 



XII. 1. 

Has England gained hy the Reformation in Temporal 

Happiness ? 

Twice did the roman-catholic religion rescue the inhabi- 
tants of England from paganism. She instructed them in the 
divine truths of the gospel ; introduced civilization among 
them ; was, after the Norman Conquest, their only protection 
against the oppressions of their conqueror; and, during a long 
subsequent period, their only defence against the tyranny of 
the barons. To her, you owe your magna charta^ the impor- 
tant statute de tallagio non concedendo^ and several other sta- 
tutes, regulations and forms, which are the groundwork and 
bulwark of your constitution. A numerous clergy administer- 
ed the rights and blessings of religion ; numerous portions, 
both of men and women, whose institutes were holy, furnish- 
ed the young with means of education, the old with comforta- 
ble retreats, and all with opportunities of serving God in hon- 
our and integrity. Throughout England the roman-catholic 
religion only was acknowledged, so that the reformation found 
the whole nation one flock under one shepherd. Almost every 
village contained a church, to which the faithful, at stated 



144 EFFECTS OF [Letter 

hours, regularly flocked, for the celebration of the eternal sa- 
crifices, for morning and evening prayer, and for exhortation 
and instruction. In a multitude of places, the silence of the 
night was interrupted by pious psalmody. England was co- 
vered with edifices raised by the sublimest science, and dedi- 
cated to the most noble and most salutary purposes ; commerce 
prospered ; agriculture, literature, every useful and ornamental 
art and science was excellently cultivated, and was in a state 
of gradual improvement. The monarch was illustrious among 
the most illustrious potentates of Europe, and held the balance 
between its preponderating princes : his court was splendid ; 
the treasury overflowed with wealth ; there was no debt ; and, 
(one fourth part of the tithes in every place being set apart for 
the maintenance of the poor,*) there was no poor law. 

Such was the temj'oral prosperity of England when the re- 
formation arrived. Will it sufler on a comparison of it with 
the condition of England at any subsequent aera ? or even with 
its present ? 



XII. 2. 

Has England gained by the Reformation in Spiritual 

Wisdom? 

Her great gain, in this respect, is asserted by you in every 
part of " the Book of the Church :" I shall mention a single 
fact, then leave yourself to decide on the truth of your own 
repeated assertion. 

From " the Book of the Church,^' I conclude that you are a 
sincere believer in the doctrines of the established church of 

•Burn's Justice of Peace, title " Poor," sect. L.I. 



XII.] THE REFORMATION. 145 

England, as they are expressed in the thirty-nine articles,— the 
authentic formulary of her faith. You therefore helieve all 
that the roman^catholic church believes respecting the Trinity, 
the Incarnation, the Divinity of Christ, and the Atonement -, but 
are these doctrines seriously and sincerely believed by the 
great body of the present English clergy ? or by the great body 
of the present English laity ? Do not the former, to use Mr. 
Gibbon's expression, sign the thirty-nine articles with a sigh, 
or a smile ? Is a sincere and conscientious belief of the doc- 
trines expressed in them, generally considered by the laity to 
be a condition for salvation ? 

Indifference to the thirty-nine articles being thus universal, 
or at least very general, among those who profess themselves 
members of the established church, must not you, who deem 
so highly of them, admit that, — as the roman-catholic church 
believes all that is said in the thirty-nine articles respecting 
the Trinity, the Incarnation, the Divinity of Christ, and the 
Atonement, — there existed when the reformation peered, and 
ail these articled were universally believed, more spiritual wis- 
dom in England than exists in her at this time, with her pre- 
sent scanty creed ? 

Thus the balance, in respect both to temporal happiness and 
spiritual wisdom, now stands ; but if you look at the period 
between the first in tr(5duction of the reformation and its pre- 
sent aera, what years of havoc, what disputed successions of 
the crown, what wars, what legal murders, what demolitions 
of magnificent edifices, what destructions af manuscripts, of 
printed books, of sacred and profane monuments of art; what 
proscriptions, what confiscations, what calumnies, what ima- 
ginary plots, and what other grinding oppressions, in every 
form, have been often found necessary to extirpate the antient 
creed, and to introduce and establish the reformation ! Surely 
13 



146 EFFECTS OF [Letter 

you will acknowledge that an infinity, both of public and indi- 
vidual misiry would have been spared to England, if the refor- 
mation had not been carried to the extent to which it was car- 
ried :~but, 

" Vicisti ! et victos tendere palraas 

" Ausonii videre!" Virgil. 

The reformation, and all that is connected with it, are now 
established by law ; and never have a vanquished people more 
completely submitted to the conquerors, have conducted them- 
selves with greater propriety, or received alleviations of their 
condition with greater gratitude, than the roman-catholics have 
done : none of his majesty's subjects are more attached to his 
government. When we think of past grievances, we bless the 
hands which have removed so many of them ; an angry feel- 
ing seldom rises, except when, as in " the Book of the 
Church," we find our religion traduced, and our ancestors vili- 
fied in such a manner, that we should deservedly be thought 
either more or less than men, if we did not exert ourselves to 
repel the unmerited aggression. 



XII. 3. 

Was the Reformation attended hy a general Improvement in 

Morals? 

The primitive reformers themselves assert the contrary: — 

" We see," says Luther, "that, through the malice of the de- 

" vil, men are now more avaricious, more cruel, more disorder- 

" ly, more insolent, and much more wicked, than they were 

" under popery."* — ^^ If any one wish," says Musculus, to see 

* In Postil. Dom. part 1 ; Dom. 2, Adv. 



XII.] THE REFORMATION. 147 

'' a multitude of knaves, disturbers of the public peace, kc, let 
" him go to a city where the gospel is preached in its purity,'' 
(he means a reformed city •) " for it is clearer than the light of 
" the day, that never were. pagans more vicious ^nd disorderly 
'' than those professors of the gospel."* " The thing," says 
Melancthon, "speaks for itself. In this country, among the 
" reformed, their whole time is devoted to intemperance and 
" drunkenness, {immanihus poculis.) So deeply are the peo- 
" pie sunk into barbarity and ignorance, that many of them 
" would imagine they should die in the night, if they should 
" chance to fast in the day."| Neither was this growth of 
vice and ignorance confined to foreign kingdoms, " In this 
" nation," says Stubbs,J after he had made the tour of Eng- 
land, "I found a general decay of good works, or rather a 
" plain defection or falling away from God. — For good works, 
" who sees not that they," (the papists of fonner times,) " were 
^ far before us, and we far behind them ?" — Erasmus thus de- 
scribes the fruits of the reformation: he was, indeed, a catho- 
lic ; but a catholic whom the protestants allow to have been 
impartial. — He was an eye-witness to the introduction and pro- 
gress of the reformation ; he observed its workings with the 
eye of a philosopher, and marked them down with the accura- 
cy of a candid and correct historian . — " And who," says he, 
" are those gospel people ? Look around you, and show me 
" one who has become a better man; — show me one, who, 
" once a glutton, is now turned sober ; — one, who, before vio- 
" lent, is now meek ; — one, who, before avaricious, is now 
" generous ; — one, who, before impure, is now chaste. I can 

♦Dom. l,Adv. 
t Ad Cap. 6, lat. 

I Motives of Good Works, with an Epistle dedicatorie to the Lord 
Mayor of London, an. 1596. 



148 EFFECTS OF [Letter 

" point out multitudes, who are become far wonse than they 
" were before. In their assemblies you never see any of them 
" heave a sigh, shed a tear, or strike his breast, even on the 
" days that are sacred to affliction. Their discourses are little 
" else but calumnies against the priesthood. — They have abo- 
" lished confession; and few of them confess their sins even to 
" God. — They have abrogated fasting, and they wallow in sen- 
" suality. — They have become epicureans, for fear of being 
"Jews. — They have cast 5ff the yoke of human institutions, 
" and along with it, they have shaken off the yoke of the Lord. 
" So far from being submissive to bishops, they are disobedient 
" to the civil magistrates. What tumults and seditions mark 
" their conduct ! For what trifles do they fly to arms ! St. 
" Paul commanded the first christians to shun the society of 
" the wicked; and, behold! the reformers seek most the soeie- 
" ty of the most corrupted ; these are their delight. The gos- 
" pel now flourishes, forsooth, because priests and monks take 
" wives in opposition to human laws, and in despite of their 
" sacred vows. Own it ; it is folly to exchange evils for evils, 
" and madness to exchange small evils for great ones." — " In- 
" deed," says Melancthon,'* weeping while he says it, " speak- 
" ing modestly, any other state of things, in any other age, ex- 
" hibits the beauty of an age of gold, when it is compared to 
" the confusion which the reformers introduced." 

Capito,! a great partizan of Luther, and much connected with 
Bucer^ writes thus to Farell^ a leader among the calvinists, 
'- As they have wholly deprived the clergy of credit, it is natu- 
'^ ral that all should change for the worse. There is no longer 
'' any order in the communities. I acknowledge the great 
" evils which we have occasioned in the church, by rejecting; 

*Ep.lib. iv. 

t Epist. ad Farell, int. Calv. p. 5. 



XII.] THE REFORMATION. 149 

" with so much imprudence and precipitation, the authority of 
" the pope. The people is now without bridle or curb, and 
" despises all authority ; as if, by abolishing the papacy, we 
" had suppressed, in the same manner, the power of the ser- 
" vants of the church, and the efficacy of the sacraments ! Eve- 
" ry one now exclaims, — I have enough to guide myself! As 
" I have the gospel to lead me to the discovery of Jesus Christ 
" and his doctrines, what need I of other help .^" — " All the 
" waters of the Elbe," Melancthon* writes to one of his cor- 
respondents, " would not give me sufficient tears to bewail 
" the miseries of the reformation. The people will never sub- 
" mit to the yoke, which the love of liberty had made them 
^ throw x)ff. Our partizans fight, not for the gospel, but as- 
" cendancy. Ecclesiastical discipline no longer exists. Doubts 
" are entertained on the most important subjects : the evil is 
" incurable," 

Bishop Burnett gives the following view of the state of mo- 
rality in England, in the reign of Edward VI. : — " The sins of 
" England did, at that time, gall down from heaven heavy 
^ curses. They are sadly expressed in a discourse that Ridley 
" wrote after, under the title Of the Lamentation of England : 
" he says, that ' lechery, oppression, pride, covetousness, and a 
^' hatred and scorn of all religion, were generally spread among 
" all people ; but chiefly those of higher rank,' " — " Lechery," 
says Latimer, " is used in England, and such lechery, as is 
" used in no other part of the world. And it is made a matter 
" of sport, a trifle, not to be passed on or reformed." — I might 
cite passages equally strong upon the state of morals in the 

*Melancth. Ep. 1. iv ; Ep. 100—1 29. 
f History of the Reformation, part 2, p. 226. 
13* 



150 . EFFECTS OF, &c. [Letter 

reign of queen Elizabeth, both from Strype,* a zealous advo- 
^te for the reformation, and Camden, the queen's historiogra- 
pher 5 but I have no pleasure in describing such scenes, and no- 
thing short of your strong abuse, and, I must say, misrepre- 
sentation of the religion and morals of catholics in catholic 
times, would have induced me to transcribe the preceding pas- 
sages.— With one question more, however, I beg leave to trou- 
ble you. 

You are undoubtedly acquainted with the following strange 
passages in different works of Luther : he first describes his 
conduct and feelings, while he remained within the pale of the 
catholic religion, and observed the rules of his order: — " When 
" I lived in my monastery, I punished my body with watching, 
" fasting and prayer ; I observed my vows of chastity, pover- 
" ty and obedience. Whatsoever I did, it was with singleness 
" of heart ; with good zeal, and for the glory of God, &.c. I 
'^ feared grievously the last day, and was, from the bottom of 
" my heart, desirous of being saved"! Here he presents us 
with a picture at once amiably and respectable ; and, as there 
is no reason to suppose that Luther excelled, in piety, the gen- 
erality of his companions, it may be considered a fair repre- 
sentation of the general character of the members of religious 
orders when the reformation broke out. 

Now hear the description, which he gives of himself, after 
he had commenced reformer : — " I am burnt," he said, " with 
, •' the flames of my untamed flesh ; I am mad almost with the 
" rage of lust, and the desire of women. I, who ought to be 
" fervent in spirit, am fervent in impurity, in sloth, &c.J Re- 
'' lying on the strong foundation of my learning, I yield not, in 

* Strype's Mem. Eccl. book ii, c. 23. 

t Ad Gal. 

J In Col. Mens. 



XII.] REVIVAL OF LETTERS. 151 

" pride, either to the emperor, prince or devil ; no, not to the 
" universe itself."* 

You also know the strange poetical effusion of Beza^ — 

" Abest Candida,— Beza quid moraris !" 

Now, in all the legends, in all the other monkeries, — I use 
your own words, — which you have so strongly vituperated, is 
there even one so scandalous, or so likely to corrupt the mo- 
rals of its readers, as these passages in the works of the ac- 
knowledged patriarchs of your church ? 



XII. 4. 

Was the Revival of Letters oiving to the Reformation^ or 
materially forwarded hy it f 

The great advances which were made in every branch of 
literature, both on the Continent and in England, previously to 
the reformation, are kept in the background by yourself, and 
most other writers against the roman-catholic religion, so that 
the generality of readers think, that the revival of polite litera- 
ture was entirely owing to the reformers ; but justice should be 
done to our catholic ancestors. 

Before the first dawn of the reformation, literature, the sci- 
ences, and the arts, had found munificent protectors in Nicho- 
las V. Sixtus IV. and more than one Medicean pope ; in Besa- 
rion, Lionel and Borsus, at Ferrara ; in the Viscontis, the Sfor- 
sias, and Lewis Moras, at Milan *, in the dukes of Urbino ; in 
Alphonsus of Arragon, at Naples ; in Mathias Corvinus, in 
Hungary *, in Charles VII. Lewis XII. and Francis I. in France ; 

♦ Resp ad Maled. Regni Angliae. — I transcribe doctor Fletcher's trans- 
lation of these three passages. Sermons, vol. 2, p. 116, 1 17. 



152 REVIVAL OF LETTERS. [Letter 

in James IV. of Scotland ; and Henry VIII. of England. Be- 
fore the end of the fifteenth century, the presses had been 
worked in thirty-four towns in France : Nicholas V. had found- 
ed the library of the Vatican ; Besarion had given his magnifi- 
cent collection to Venice ; and the old and the young had 
crowded to the iGrreek school of Emmanuel Chrysoloras.^ You 
are not unacquainted with the many ladies, who,in the thirteenth, 
fourteenth, and fifteenth centuries, were illustrious for learning 
and science ; you know that some of them even filled chairs of 
professors in the universities of Italy. During the same cen- 
turies, literature flourished so much in Germany, that the cele- 
brated Reuchlin was accustomed to say, that " Greece had tra- 
" versed the Alps, and settled among his countrymen." Be- 
tween the years 1403 and 1506, more than ten universities had 
been founded on German soil ; and improved courses of litera- 
ture had been established in Deventer, Kempten, Alkmaar, 
Munster, Heidleberg, Worms, and various other Teutonic 
towns. Between the years 1455 and 1536, more than 22,932,- 
000 volumes hajd issued from various presses ;| and, long be- 
fore the name of Luther was heard, Cimabue, the father of the 
nwdern school of painting, had produced noble specimens of 
his art; Brunelleschi had revived, at Florence, the forms of 
antient architecture; and Dante had produced his Divinia Co- 
media. 

Survey the long line of towns in Belgium ; those which 
adorn Lombardy ; the many public edifices of magnificent and 
costly architecture, with which they are filled ; the works in 
marble, gold, silver, iron and bronze, with which they are or- 
namented; — how much of these were anterior to Luther! 

*See the Recherches sur les Bibliotheques, p. 82, 207, 233, and A. H. 
L. Heeren's Geschichte der Kunste und der Wissenschaflen, seitder Wied- 
erherstellung derselben. 

t Recherches sur les Bibliotheques, p. 180. 



XII.J REVIVAL OF LETTERS. 153 

In England, Roger Bacon had meditated, and Chaucer had 
sung. Erasmus mforms us, that '' learning triumphed in Eng- 
" land, and that the king and the queen, two cardinals, and al- 
" most all the Bishops, exerted themselves in promoting and 
" encouraging it." He mentions, " as eminently learned, Lin- 
'' acre, the king's physician ; Cuthbert Trunstal, master of the 
" rolls ] Sir Thomas Moore, of the privy council ; Pace, secre- 
'' tary of state ; William Mountjoy, the queen's chamberlain; 
" John Colet, preacher to their majesties;" and " as yet," says 
Erasmus, "I have only mentioned the chief. The court 
" abounds with such eminent men, that it seems a seat of the 
" muses, and may vie with any school of philosophy, with 
" Athens itself."* All this was anterior to the reformation. 
I beg leave to add, that Mary of England, Elizabeth, Mary of 
Scotland, Lady Jane Grey, and the three ladies Seymour, all 
of whom are celebrated for their learning and accomplishments, 
received their literary educations in catholic England. How 
many of the Elizabethan prelates, whose learning you extol^ 
received their education under roman-catholic masters ? Then^ 
can it be denied, that the reformation found literature, sci- 
ence and art, diffused over all the southern, and most of the 
northern territories of Eui^pe ? Or that it was then in a very 
advanced state of cultivation ? Or that the ardour of the pub- 
lic, for instruction, was very high ? or that there was a very 
strong and very general desire for instruction and improve- 
ment ? 

Surely the progress of it was rather retarded than promoted 
by the theological disputes, the animosities, the contentions^ 
and the wars, which were occasioned by the reformation. 

It is observable, that " Luther and Melancthon," to use the 
words of Mosheim,! " seemed to set out with tl^e resolution to 

*Ad Petrum Bemhum, Basileae, an. 1518. 
f Cent. xvi. c. 1, s. 10. 



154 REVIVAL OF LETTERS. [Letter 

" banish every species of philosophy from the church." Lu- 
ther wished that the works of Plato, Aristotle, Cicero, and 
the other ancient classics, should be consigned to the flames.* 
Stock,his disciple, opposed the teaching of the alphabet, lest the 
distractions, which study occasions, should withhold the mind 
from God :| on this principle, he founded a sect called Abece- 
darians. " At Strasburg," says Erasmus, in a letter to Melancthori,J 
" it is publicly taught, that no science chould be cultivated, and 
" that no language, except Hebrew, should be taught." I see 
no reason to suppose, that Luther changed the opinion ex- 
pressed in the passage which I have cited : Melancthon cer- 
tainly did, and published his Loci Communes^ a philosophical 
work, greatly esteemed. From this time, letters were generally 
cultivated by the reformers, and they deserved highly of litera- 
ture ; still, you must admit that the first advances were made 
by roman-catholics, and that the revival of letters was origi- 
nally, if not principally, owing to them. 

You will probably expect, that I should say something on 
the subject of the Biblical studies of the roman-catholics be- 
fore the period of the reformation. I trust -that you will agree 
with me, that, taking the circumstances of the times into con- 
sideration, they were pursued both with ardour and success. 
On this head, I beg leave to refer you to the second part of 
doctor Hody's '' Scholastic History of the Text and Versions 
^' of the Greek and Latin Vulgate :" you will find it proves, 
beyond controversy, that there never was a time, even in the 
darkest ages, in which the study of the scriptures, in their origi- 
nal languages, was not cultivated and encouraged by the ro- 
man-catholic clergy. The works of the venerable Bede, of 

* Ep. ad Nob. Germ. an. 1520. 
t Osiander, Cent. xvi. e. 2. 
t Ep. 71. — ad Melancthon, 



XII.] REVIVAL OF LETTEBS. 155 

Grossetete, the bishop of Lincoln, and Roger Bacon, show 
how much they were encouraged in this country. No sooner 
was the typographic art discovered, than the catholic presses 
were employed in printing, in every size, from the folio to the 
twenty-fourth, editions of the Old and New Testament. The 
labours of Lanfranc, whom you so much and so deservedly 
praise, in procuring correct copies both of the Old and New 
Testament, are mentioned by Baronius, Cave, Dupin, and Wet- 
stein. Every roman-catholic acknowledges, with readiness, 
the transcendant merit of the London Polyglot ; but it was 
preceded by those of Complutum, Antwerp and Paris. Will it 
be too much to require, of candid protestants, to admit, that 
without these, the London Polyglot would not have existed ? 
The Complutensian Polyglot was begun in 1502, and the 
whole printed in 1517, long before the first dawn of the refor- 
mation. 

You mention the translations of the Bible into English in 
terms, which must lead your readers to suppose, that the ro- 
man-catholic church discourages translations of it into verna- 
cular languages. How very often, and how very erroneously, 
has this been charged upon the catholics ! If you will do your 
present correspondent the favour, to look into his " Essay on 
" the Discipline of the Church of Rome, respecting the general 
'' perusal of the Scriptures in the vulgar Tongue, by the Lai- 
" ty,"* you will find, that several translations into the German, 
several into the French, several into the Italian, and several in- 
to the Belgic tongue, had been printed, before publications of 

* Butler's works, vol. 4, essay ii. p. 191. In the ''^Garden of the 5»owZ," 
the most popular catholic prayer-book, a new edition of which, with the 
formal approbation of doctor Poynter, has been recently published, ro- 
man-cathoHcs are recommended, (p. 203,) " before they go to bed, to 
r€ad a chapter in the scripture^ or some spiritual book." 



156 DISSOLUTION OF [Letter 

protestant versions in those languages appeared. I beg leave 
to add, that, at the revocation of the edict of Nantes, 50,000 
copies of a French translation of the New Testament, were^ at 
the recommendation of Bossuet, distributed among the convert- 
ed protestants, by the order of Louis XIV.* Several years 
ago, I was furnished, by an English bookseller, with a list of 
twenty-three editions of the roman-catholic translation of the 
New, or of both the Old and New Testament \ and many 
have been printed since that time. For several years past, 
the roman-catholic s have been censured, with great severity, 
for not encouraging, to the extent recommended, the promis- 
cuous reading of the English Bible, by the laity, without note 
or comment. Are we not entitled to our opinion upon it ? Has 
not experience justified our caution ? Have not several emi- 
nent lights, of the protestant church, always condemned, do 
not several of them now condemn it ? Have not many of the 
most respectable advocates, for the general distribution of Bi- 
bles, now declared a different opinion } 



XIL 5. 

Whether the Conduct of the religious Orders justified the 
Dissolution of the Monasteries ? 

A PERSON, who would publish a true and full account of 
this important event, and state candidly in it, the advantages 
and disadvantages which, at the aera of the reformation, attend- 
ed monastic establishments, would deserve well of the literary 
world. To the best of my power, I have attempted to do it in 
my '' Historical Memoirs of the English, Scottish, and Irish 

* Vie de Bossuet, eveque de Meaux, par le cardinal de Bausset, ed. 
1814, tome iv. p. 83. 



XII.] MONASTERIES. 157 

" Roman-catholics ;" and you will oblige me by perusing what 
I have written in that work upon this subject. 

In a preceding letter, I have inserted the encomiastic ac- 
count given of monasteries by M. Mallet, an intelligent and 
candid protestant. I shall now transcribe what is said of them, 
by an abler writer, not unknown to yourself,* 

" The world has never been so deeply indebted to any body 
'^ of men, as to this illustrious order ; but historians, when re- 
" lating the evil of which they are the occasion, have forgo t- 
" ten the good which they produced. Even the commonest 
" readers are familiar with the history of that arch miracle-mon- 
'^ ger St. Dunstan ; whilst the most learned of our countrymen 
^ scarce remember the names of those admirable men, who 
" went forth • from England, and became the apostles of the 
" North. Tinian and Juan Fernandez are not more beautiful 
" spots on the ocean, than Malmsbury, and Lendisfarne, and 
" Jarrow, in the ages of our heptarchy. A community of pi- 
" ous men, devoted to literature, and to the useful arts, as well 
" as to religion, seems, in those ages, like a green oasis amid 
" the desert; like stars in a moonless night, they shine upon 
" us with a tranquil ray. If ever there was a man who could 
" truly be called venerable, it was he to whom that appellation 
" is constantly fixed, Bede, whose life was past in instructing 
" his own generation, and preparing records for posterity. In 
" those days the church offered the only asylum from the evils 
" to which every country was exposed : amidst continual wars 
" the church enjoyed peace ; it was regarded as a sacred realm 
" by men, who, though they hated each other, believed and 
" feared the same God. Abused as it was, by the worldly- 
'^ minded and ambitious, and disgraced by the artifices of the 
'^ designing, and the follies of the fanatic, it afforded a shelter 

* Quarterly Review for December, 1811. 
14 



153 DISSOLUTION OF [Letter 

" to those who were better than the world in their youth, or 
" weary of it in their age : the wise, as well as the timid and 
" the gentle, fled to this Goshen of God, Avhich enjoyed its own 
" light and calm, amid darkness and storms." 

After perusing this splendid tribute, evidently given by no 
mean hand, to the useful and the edifying habits of the inhabi- 
tants of the monasteries, it is difficult to believe, that the lives 
of a great proportion of them were so scandalous, or even so 
useless, as to justify a total suppression of them. 

The best account of this extraordinary event, which has 
come to my hands, is given in " Collier's Ecclesiastical Histo- 
'' ry." He sheds a generous tear over the sufferers ; and, 
while he admits the criminality of some individuals, and the 
disorders of some houses, he honourably and successfully ad- 
vocates the general integrity of the body. 

In my opinion, the report of the commissioners, employed 
in the visitation of the monasteries, is wholly unworthy of 
credit. We see how little attention to truth, and how great a 
violation, both of the substance and forms of justice, were 
shown, even hi the proceedings in parliament, and in the high- 
est courts of justice, against the most exalted and most dis- 
tinguished personages, whom the king wished to oppress, and 
whom all, except the king, wished to preserve. How much 
less, then, must necessarily have been the attention paid, either 
to truth or justice, when monks and nuns were to be persecut- 
ed ? where obscure individuals were appointed to report upon 
their conduct ? where the king was determinately bent upon 
their ruin .? where his courtiers were indifferent to their fate ? 
and where plunder of them was the general aim and immedi- 
ate expectation of many, and the sanguine hope of almost all } 



XII.] MONASTERIES. 159 



XII. 6. 

Alleged JSTegligence of the Church of Rome^ in remedying 
Ecclesiastical Muses. 

You remark, that " much might have been done by the time- 
" ly removal of abuses, so gross, that the romanists of the pre- 
" sent age are reduced, in the face of notorious facts, to deny 
" what they find it impossible to defend." 

Do we really deserve this abusive language ? In the passage 
which 1 translated, in a former page, from Bossuet, are the 
abuses in the church denied ? Are they even palliated ? Is 
not this passage alone, particularly if we take into account the 
documents which it cites, and, therefore, incorporates, a com- 
plete refutation of the most contumelious charge, which you, 
in this place, bring against us ? In the fifth of his excellent 
letters to doctor Sturges, doctor Milner expressly acknowledges 
" the increasing spirit of irreligion and immorality among dif- 
" ferent nations, and in none more than our own, during a con- 
" siderable time previous to the reformation." Are not these 
as full confessions of the abuses in the church, as you can re- 
quire ? We believe that they were not so extensive, or so enor- 
mous, as you represent them. We think your description of 
them a hideous caricature ; but their existence, to a great and 
lamentable height and extent, we never deny. If you look in- 
to Mr. Alban Butler's "Lives of the Saints," one of the most 
popular works which have issued from the roman-catholic 
press, you will scarcely find in it the life of any saint, who 
flourished during the middle ages, in which, on the one hand, 
the then existing disorders, and, on the other, his exertions to 
remove them, are not mentioned. 



160 DISSOLUTION OF, &.c. [Letter 

Thus, contrary to your strong accusation, do our writers ac- 
knowledge the existence of abuses in our own church. But 
why are you silent on the unceasing efforts of the roman-cath- 
olic church to remedy them ? In 789, the council of Aix-la- 
Chapelle, in 813, the council of Chalons, proscribed the abuses 
in pilgrimages. In 1215, the council of Lateran, in 1274, the 
council of Lyons, came to resolutions against the multiplica- 
tion of religious orders. In the last of these councils, and in 
that of Constance, much was said against the prodigality, with 
which the indulgences were then distributed. Are you igno- 
rant of the resolutions taken at the councils of Constance and 
Basil, against the abuses of papal power } iEneas Silvius, af- 
terwards Pope Pius II. informs us, that " the doctrine held in 
'' those councils was that of the greater number of catholic di- 
" vines, of the lights of the church, of the doctors of truth, and 
" of most of the universities and schools in Christendom."* 

Hincmar, archbishop of Rheims, and cardinal Cusa, publicly 
called into question the authenticity of the decretals. Look in- 
to the histories of the pontificates of Leo IV., Leo IX, Gregory 
VIL, Innocent III., Urban V., you will find abundant proof of 
the exertions of the popes, to preserve' both integrity of faith 
and purity of morals in every part of Christendom, and to pro- 
pagate Christianity in the remotest regions of the earth. Open 
your own Wilkins ; see what w^as done by the English roman- 
catholie clergy, during the middle ages, to promote the honour 
of God and the welfare of man» " Gregory VII., Alexander III., 
" Innocent IV." says Muller, a protestant writer of celebrity, 
" arrested the torrent of immorality which was then swallow- 
" ing up the world. . . , . . If the hierarchy had been remov- 
" ed, Europe would have been deprived of an order of men, 
^' which, (although it were for their own interest only,) has al- 

* Comment, Fii U. p. m. 1 3, 



XII.] ROMAN-CATHOLIC, &c. 1 6 1 

" ways had its eyes upon the public welfare. An asylum 
" against the wrath of kings was found in the altar : an asylum 
" against the abuse of ecclesiastical power was found in the 
" throne, and the public good resulted from the balance." Why 
then have you dwelt so little on the edifying parts of the his- 
tory of the roman-catholic church,^and so much on its misfor- 
tunes ? What should you think of a painter, who, professing 
to give a view of the Alps, should keep its magnificent scenery 
M^hoUy in the background, and bring nothing prominently in 
sight, but the few stagnant marshes which deform it.? 



XII. 7. 

Doctor Southey'^s Muse of former and present Catholic 
Historical Writers, 

You say little on the subject of the div^orce ; but, when you 
mention the execution of Anne Boleyn, you tell us, that " the 
" romanists were, in that age, so accustomed to falsehood, that 
" they could not abstain from it, even when the truth might 
" have served their cause. With characteristic effrontery, they 
" asserted, that her mother and her sister had both been mis- 
" tresses of the king, and that she was his own daughter. 

" In this spirit the histories of our reformation were com- 
" posed, till they perceived that such coarse calumnies could no 
'' longer be palmed upon the world, and then they past into an 
" insidious strain, little less malicious, and not more faithful." 

Henry's connexion with the mother of Anne Boleyn is re* 
jected by doctor Lingard; but the connexion between Henry 
and Mary, the sister of the unfortunate Anne, admits of no 
doubt. The monarch's connexion with the mother of Anne is 
problematical : the argument for it rests principally on the strong 
14* ' 



162 ROMAN-CATHOLIC [Letter 

assertion of Saunders, and the inferences to be drawn from the 
marked care and attention which the monarch constantly be- 
stowed on Anne, from the time of her birth ; from the expen- 
sive education, and the splendid establishment which she re- 
ceived from him, and for which no other reason can be assign- 
ed. Burnet replied to Saunders ; le Grand to Burnet ; and le 
Grand's arguments are powerful. But crimes should never be 
believed without strong, and seldom without positive evidence. 
This, in the present case, appears to be wholly wanting ; and 
cardinal Pole's total silence upon the charge, in his acrimonious 
invectives against Henry, is favourable to the monarch. I do 
not believe the tale : but 1 cannot think that the historians who 
asserted it deserve the epithet of " fiendish malignity," which 
you bestow upon them. If they deserve it, what epithet do 
those deserve, who, in the days of James IL, invented or prop- 
agated the story of the warming-pan ? 

I know of no catholic writer who deserves the strong ex- 
pressions which, in the passage I have cited from your work, 
you have applied, without any exception, to all our former and 
all our present historians of the reformation. You know the 
great and deserved celebrity of " Doctor Milner's Letters to 
'^ Doctor Sturges ;" the greatest part of them is of an historical 
nature ; and there never has been a more powerful attack on 
the characters of the persons, by whom the reformation was 
primitively established and supported, than in this work. It 
appeared in 1800 ; and thus it has been twenty-four years be- 
fore the public : seven editions of it have been published. 

Can you point out in it one instance of that " falsehood," 
that '' coarse calumny," those " insidious strains," that " cha- 
" racteristic effrontery," that " malice," that '' insidiousness," 
or that " faithlessness," with which you charge our historians 
in the sentence which I have transcribed from your work. 



XIL] WRITERS DEFENDED. 163 

You probably are acquainted with doctor Milner's " End of 
^^ Controversy," published in 1818, and now in its third edi- 
tion ; the ablest exposition of the doctrines of the roman-catho- 
lic church, on the articles contested with her by protestants ; 
and the ablest statement of the proofs by which they are sup- 
ported, and of the historical facts with which they are connect- 
ed, that has appeared in our language. You probably have 
heard of the "Reply to it," published by the reverend Richard 
Grier, vicar of Templebodane, in Ireland, and of doctor Mil- 
ner's " Vindication," published in 1822. Can you point out 
in ." the End of Controversy," or the " Vindication of it," even 
a single passage, to which even one of the opprobrious expres- 
sions in your work can be justly applied ? or can you point out 
a single passage objected to by Mr. Grier, in which doctor Mil- 
ner has not triumphantly refuted him ? 

Doctor Lingard's history is evidently not unknown to you. 
Does he not appear in every part of it, to have consulted origi- 
nal writers and documents ? Does he not uniformly express 
himself in the most explicit terms ? Does he not regularly 
mention the dates of every occurrence related by him ? Does 
he not constantly cite the authorities upon which his relations 
are founded ? Is not his language uniformly temperate ? Yet, 
in the unqualified generality of your opprobrious words, is his 
excellent history included! 

One passage in it you particularly advert to : " It is fit," you 
say,* " that the reader should know in what manner the re- 
" cent catholic historian, doctor Lingard, speaks of lord Cob- 
" ham's trial, before the convocation, at which Arundel, the 
" archbishop of Canterbury, presided; he says, that 'Lord Cob- 
" ham's conduct was as arrogant and insulting, as that of his 
^' judge was mild and dignified.' It is fitting, indeed, that we 

♦Vol. 1. p. 391, note. 



164 COBHAM. [Letter 

" should know in what manner an English catholic historian 
" speaks of such transactions in these times^ — We cannot think 
the three last words of this sentence, — you yourself print them 
in italics, — are used with good-natured intentions towards us. 
The best account of what passed at lord Cobham's trial, is 
given in the Acts of the Convocation, published by Wilkins.^ 
If I could place the volume and the pages before my readers, I 
should be satisfied and silent : as every person who perused 
them, would acknowledge the accuracy of doctor Lingard's 
representation. No insulting, no harsh expression, was utter- 
ed by the archbishop 5 his addresses to lord Cobham were uni- 
formly decorous, dignified, and mild. He adjourned the court 
for four days, to give lord Cobham time for reflection and de- 
fence. Was any thing like this humanity exhibited on the 
trials of the innocent catholics, in the reigns of queen Elizabeth 
and her three protestant successors } 

Lord Cobham had three times refused to obey the process 
of the court requiring his appearance; he had fortified his cas- 
tle to prevent its being served upon him ; and, ultimately, he 
was apprehended by force. When, at length, he was produced 
in court, he declined giving explicit answers on the points on 
which he was interrogated : " I believe," he said, " all that my 
" Lord God would I should believe." — " Such faith," vou re- 
mark, " was not sufficient, under the papal tyranny, to save him 
'' from the flames." Was it sufficient to save from the rack 
or gibbet the catholic suflerers in this kingdom for their reli- 
gion in any protestant reign ? Would it have saved the ana- 
baptists, who suffered in the reign of Elizabeth.^ or the 
arians, who suflxsred in the reign of James } Would it have 
satisfied any of the judges, who lately tried the Carlisles } or 
the magistrates, who lately committed Hale ? Lord Cobham 
repeatedly denied the jurisdiction of the court who tried him; 

♦Concilia, vol. 3. p. 353—367, 



XII.] COBHAM. 165 

compared his judges to the Pharisees, to Ananias, to Caiphas : 
he told them, that " Rome was the very nest of antichrist ; and 
'^ that out of that nest came all the disciples of him, of whom 
" prelates, priests, and monks were the body, and the piled fri- 
" ars the tail. Your possessions and lordships," he told the 
archbishop, " are venom, shed by Judas into the church : — 
" ye never followed Christ." Can you say, that this language 
was not arrogant, or not insulting ? — I use your own translation 
of it. 

I trust that this, though a succinct, will be found a true re- 
presentation of what passed between the archbishop and lord 
Cobham. I now ask, whether, if a person should, at this time, 
conduct himself in any spiritual or temporal court, in the same 
manner as lord Cobham did in the court of convocation, be- 
fore archbishop Arundel, he would not be punished? Yet you 
laud lord Cobham's conduct throughout. 

You then inform us, that the court " excommunicated lord 
" Cobham, and pronounced him accursed ; and not him alone, 
" but all who should in anyway receive, help, or defend him." 
The word accursed^ is your own addition : no such word was 
used by the court. You call it a " cruel and inhuman" sen- 
tence : how many sentences equally cruel and inhuman have 
been passed by protestant courts on catholics, not only less 
culpable than lord Cobham, but perfectly innocent of the crimes 
of which they were accused ? and their innocence of which is 
now acknowledged? 

In a former part of your work, you transcribe the terrible 
words in which excommunication was expressed : you observe, 
" that no form of heathen superstition could have been so revolt- 
^ ing, as when a christian minister called upon the Redeemer 
^' of Mankind to fulfil execrations which the devil himself 
^^ might seem to have inspired." I do not defend the words to 



166 HENRY VIII. [Letter 

which you object ; they were devised in an age of barbarism, 
when the most forcible language only had any effect on the 
populace : they were an abusive application of the curses in 
Deuteronomy;* and, I believe, they were resorted to only on 
singular occasions, and that, before the revival of letters, they 
had fallen into desuetude. By perusing the document in Wil- 
kins, to which 1 have referred, you will observe, that the sen- 
tence of excommunication, past by archbishop Arundel on lord 
Cobham, does not contain these execrations. — According to 
the actual jurisprudence of England, excommunication is yet 
attended by many civil penalties and disabilities. 

All, who peruse your account of lord Cobham, and your 
censure of doctor Lingard, should recollect that, in an earlier 
part of " the Book of the Church," you inform us, that " the 
" Lollards held principles incompatible with the peace of socie- 
" ty; opinions founded in gross error, and leading to direct and 
" enormous evil ;" and that "lord Cobham was confessedly 
" their head and leader." I trust I have successfully vindicat- 
ed doctor Lingard against the only particular charge you have 
brought against him. 

"Historical Memoirs of the English, Irish, and Scottish Ca- 
" tholics," have been published by another hand : you may, 
perhaps, find some things in them which you think objection- 
able; but I feel a strong confidence, that they do not merit any 
of the undistinguishing and unqualified expressions of gross 
abuse, which you apply to the historical productions of every 
catholic historian of the reformation. 

You close the chapter, by an insinuation in favour of Henry 
VIII. You intimate, that "he was not the mere monster 
" which, upon a cursory view, he must needs appear to every 
" young and ingenuous mind :" yet you mention, in the pre- 

* Deut. c. xzxviii. 



XII.] CROMWELL. 167 

ceding line, " his many revolting acts of caprice and cruelty ;'' 
and, in a subsequent line, " his sending a wife and a minister 
" to the scaffold with as little compunction, as he would have 
" in sending a dog to be drowned." 

The frequent repetition of these enormities, in every part of 
his reign ; his general profligacy ; his prodigality ; his wucked 
interferences with the courts of justice ; his unjust and ruin- 
ous wars ; and his general oppression of his people, are con- 
fessed by all his historians : all represent him, — to use the lan- 
guage of one of the most eminent among them, — as a tyrant, 
" who never spared woman in his lust, no.r man in his wrath; 
" so that, if all the patterns of a merciless prince had been lost 
" in the world, they might have been found in this king."* 
Such is the character given, even by his protestant historians, of 
Henry ; if it be true, it justifies your expression, — ^he was not 
a mere monster, he was more : I wish you to mention the vices 
which he did not possess *, or the talents which he possessed, 
and did not abuse. 

Cromwell, his active minister, particularly in his rejection of 
the pope's supremacy, and the dissolution of the monasteries, 
you highly extol : but you omit to mention that he died in the 
roman-catholic faith ; and that, from the scaffold, he solemnly 
professed, and called on the spectators "to bear him record, 
" that he died in the catholic faith, not doubting in any article 
"of his faith." 

♦Heylin's Hist, p. 15 ; he citing Sir Walter Raleigh. 



168 EDWARD Vf. [Letter 



LETTER XIII. 



EDWARD VI. 



Sir, 

It gives me pleasure to mention, that your account of the 
suppression of the remaining colleges, and the hospitals and 
chantries, and of the general destruction of their libraries, and 
the sacred and secular articles of use and ornament belonging 
to them, in the reign of Edward YI. is free from objection, and 
written with equal accuracy and eloquence. A catholic, how- 
ever, may be permitted to wish, that you had given in it some 
account of the enormous wickedness of the protector Somer- 
set, and of Dudley, earl of Warwick, v\^ho supplanted him. 
Under the influence of these daring noblemen, Cranmer devised 
the first sanguinary code that was framed against the English 
catholics. Now the bad character of the persecutor is univer- 
sally considered to be favourable to the persecuted : on this ac- 
count, it has, you well know, been deemed honourable to 
Christianity, that Nero was its first persecutor ; justice, there- 
fore, to the catholics seems to require, that it should be known 
who the persons were by whom they were first persecuted. 

You might also have noticed the opinion of Cranmer, that 
the exercise of episcopal jurisdiction depends upon the prince; 



XIIL] EDWARD VI. 169 

that, in conformity to this principle, he thought his own right 
to exercise episcopal authority had ended with the life of Henry 
VIII. ; that he would not act as archbishop, until the infant 
monarch had renewed his commission ; that his example was 
imitated by other prelates ; and that this proceeding was ingon- 
sistent with the doctrine of the church of England, expressed 
in the thirty-nine articles, as it is with the doctrine and disci- 
pline of the roman-catholic church. 

You might, too, have mentioned Cranmer's alienation of 
the better half of the possessions of the see of Canterbury to 
the king. Read the article in Collier's " Appendix to the se- 
^ cond volume of his historj^," in which he gives "an account 
" of the church lands alienated by the prelates, from their sees, 
^ in the reign of Henry VIII." You will find in it what Cran- 
mer did, and how his example was imitated by Ridley and 
other prelates. So great a friend as you profess yourself to 
the dignity and comfort of the English hierarchy, you may, 
perhaps, feel a wish, that, on this occasion, Cranmer and his 
imitators had shown something of the stern and uncompromis* 
ing spirit of Becket. 

You might too, and, in justice to the roman-catholics you 
ought, to have noticed their patience during the innovations in 
the reign of Edward VI. and the miseries which attended them. 
It is difficult to find, in history, an instance of more general or 
galling spoliation and oppression than those which the roman- 
catholics then sufifered. You admit, that "the majority of the 
^ nation was, at this time, attached to the old faith;" the go- 
vernment was distracted, and the mind of the public was gene- 
rally alienated from it. Thus the roman-catholics, if it had 
been their principle to propagate their religion, or even to ward 
off its impending ruin, by violence, might have easily establish- 
ed their ascendency; but this is neither their doctrine nor 
15 



170 EDWARD VI. [Letter 

their practice, — the roman-catholics, therefore, remained in 
peace. Such a remark, at the j:resent time*- — if you had made 
it, — would not have been lost upon us ; we should have grate- 
fully received it. With this feeling, we read your candid ac- 
knowledgment, th^tt the insurrection, in Edward's reign, was 
'' a conflict, not between the adherents of the old religion and 
" of the new^, but between men who fought for plunder, and 
" those whose property was at stake." 

The subject now calls me to return to the charges of igno- 
rance and corruption with which you so often, and so contu- 
meliously, upbraid our church. Here, let me request you to 
consider the proceedings, so highly injurious to sacred and 
profane learning of every kind, which attended the introduc- 
tion of the new religion in the reign of Henry VIII. and its 
progress during that of the infant Edward, whom you so high- 
ly celebrate ; and to compare them with those which attended 
the rise and progress of the catholic religion in this country. 
You recollect the expression, as just as it is beautiful, of Col- 
lier, which I have already cited, — that, on the introduction of 
catholic faith into England, "every thing seemed brightened, 
'^ as if nature had been melted down and recoined." In pro- 
portion as the catholic faith advanced, humanity, civilization, 
the arts and the sciences, advanced with her, and were equally 
enjcouraged by the monarch, the pastors, and their flocks. I 
request you, (always bearing in mind that printing was then 
unknown,) to say, whether, in your opinion, these advances 
in useful and ornamental knowledge, and this encouragement 
of them, were not greater than the most sanguine hopes could 
have expected ? All were extinguished by the Danish inva- 
sion ; but no sooner was the Norman government fettled, than 

* See the italic words in " the Book of the Church," vol. 1, p. 379.— 
Jftthu tim^, the British romau-catholics are petitioning for emancipation. 



XIII.] EDWARD VI. 17i 

all the useful and ornamental literature revived : the dominions 
of Henry II. became, if the expression may be allowed, the 
Athens of the feudal territories; and, notwithstanding the long 
years of havoc, which urged their destined way during the con- 
tests between the house of York and the house of Lancaster, 
arts, sciences and literature, were constantly on the increase. 
Compare this with the Vandal scenes which began in the reigii 
of Henry, and were consummated in the reign of his son. '' 1 
^ judge it to be true," says the most anti-catholic Bale,* " and 
" I utter it with heaviness, that neither the Britons under the 
" Romans and Saxons, nor yet the English people under the 
" Danes and N ormans, had ever such damage of their learned 
" monuments, as we have at this our time. Our posterity may 
" well curse the wicked fall of our age ; this unreasonable 
" sport of England's most noble antiquities." 

Can it then be honourably said, that the rise and first pro- 
gress of the new religion in this country, were as edifying or 
as salutary as the rise and first progress of the catholic religion 
had been ? 

But the catholic religion had superstitions and corruptions : 
— this is your constant theme. That, during the legal esta- 
blishment of the catholic religion, there were some supersti- 
tions and some corrupt practices, I admit ; and I have shown, 
that this has been admitted by our best roman-catholic writers, 
though all deny that either superstition or corruption existed 
in the extent you describe. Admitting, however, for the sake 
of argument, that both existed in the very extent described by 
you, — I have no fear of closing with you even on this ground. 
Permit me to ask you, whom I suppose to be a protestant of 
the thirty-nine articles, a single question : Which is the great- 

* Declaration upon Leland's Journal, ann. 1549 ; Fuller's Church 
History, book vi. 333. 



m EDWARD VI. [Letter XIII. 

est obstacle to the rise, the progress, or the revival of religion, 
— superstition and corruption, or laxity of creed and indiffer- 
ence } 1 leave you to answer this question, and to draw the in- 
ference. 

Believe me. Sir, the time is come, when it is for the inter- 
ests of all protestants and all catholics, who sincerely wish well 
to their respective religions, to abstain from contention, and to 
unite in the defence of their common Christianity. All my 
writings, such as they are, have at least the merit of inculcat- 
ing this salutary truth. 



MARY. 17S 



LETTER XIV. 



aUEEN MARY. 



Sir, 
I HAVE now to consider the chapter in " the Book of the 
" Church," which relates to the reign of Queen Mary. Per- 
mit me to offer you some observations, I. On her persecutions 
of the protestants: II. On archbishop Cranmer and bishop La- 
timer : III. And the queen's general character. 



XIV. L 

Persecutions of the Protestants in the Reign of Queen Mary. 

In your account of the burning of Joan Bocher, in the reign 
of Edward VI., you mention, that the active part which Cran- 
mer took in it is the saddest page in his history ; the only one 
which admits of no excuse. Permit me to introduce the sub- 
ject of this letter by asking, — ^what excuse you can suggest 
for the provision for the persecution of the roman-catholics, 
which Cranmer inserted in his " Code for the Reformation of 
" the Ecclesiastical Laws of England ?"* By this, a belief of 

♦Under the title "de Haeresibus," c. i. 7, 19, 21 ; and "de Judiciii 
" contra haec," c. i. 1, 2, 3, 4, 
15* 



174 MARY. [Letter 

transubstantiation, of the supremacy of the pope, or of justifi- 
cation by faith only, was made heresy ; and it was ordained, 
that individuals, accused of holding any such heretical opi- 
nions, should be arraigned before the spiritual courts ; should, 
on conviction, be there excommunicated ; and, after a respite 
of sixteen days, should, if they continued obstinate, be deli- 
vered to the civil magistrate, to suffer the punishment provided 
by law. Is it possible to allege any thing in extenuation of 
these provisions ? 

In extenuation of Mary's persecution, it may be said, that 
she did no more than execute, against Cranmer and his asso- 
ciates, the provisions to which he had wished her and her asso- 
ciates to be exposed ; so that the flames, in which he was con- 
sumed, were those in v/hich he himself had burned the anabap- 
tists, and sought to burn the catholics. It may also be suggested, 
that Cranmer's sanguinary scheme had not been provoked by any 
misconduct or intemperance of the catholics ; but that the provo- 
cations which the protestants had given to Mary, were numer- 
ous and irritating. " They heaped," says doctor Lingard, " on 
^' the queen, her bishops, and her religion, every ii-ritating epi- 
'^ thet which language could supply. Her clergy could not 
^' exercise their functions without danger to their lives : a dag- 
'^ get was thrown at one priest in the pulpit ; a gun was dis- 
" charged at another; and several wounds were inflicted on 
" a third, while he administered the communion in his church. 
" The chief supporters of the treason of Northumberland, the 
^' most active among the adherents of Wyat, professed the 
^^ reformed creed: an imposter was suborned to personate Ed- 
'^ ward VI. ; a pretended spirit published denunciations against 
" the queen, from a hole in a wall; some congregations pray- 
^ ed for her death ; tracts, filled with libellous and treasonable 



XIV.] MARY. 175 

" matter, were transmitted from the exiles in Germany ;* and 
" successive insurrections were planned by the fugitives in 
" France." — " When public prayers," says Mr. Phillips in his 
Life of Cardinal Pole, " were ordered, on the supposition of 
" the queen's pregnancy, a reformed preacher made use of the 
'' form, — ' that it would please God, either to turn her heart 
" from idolatry, or shorten her days.' A dog's head was 
" shaved in contempt of the clerical tonsure ; and, by an im- 
" piety, which," says Mr. Phillips, " I have difficulty to repeat, 
" a wafer was put into a dead cat's paw, in derision of the holy 
'^ sacrament, and hung up at Cheapside." 

That these were great provocations, you must admit : You 
must also admit, that no such provocations were given by the 
roman-catholics, either on the accession of Edward, or the ac- 
cession of Elizabeth. Do the persecutions which I have men- 
tioned justify Mary's persecutions ? By no means : I think 
they would have justified measures of precaution; but, be- 
tween wise measures of precaution and persecution, the space 
is immense. You say much in praise of the sanctity of 
the martyrs in Mary's reign : " I have," says doctor Milner, in 
his twenty-second letter in his " End of Controversy," " dis- 
" cussed this matter at some length in ' the Letters to a Pre- 
" bendary;' and have shown, in opposition to John Fox and 
^ his copyists, that some of these pretended martyrs were alive 
^ when he wrote the history of their deaths ^'f that others of 
" them, and five bishops in particular, so far from being saints, 
" were notoriously deficient in the duties of subjects andhon- 
" est men 5J that others again were notorious assassins, as 

* If scurrility and calumny form the merit of a libel, it will be difficult 
to find anything to equal these publications. The reader will meet with 
jsomesampleiin Strype, iii. 251, 252. 328. 358, 4l0. 460, 

t See Letter iv. on Persecution. 

I See Letter y. on the Reformation* 



176 MARY. [Letter 

" Gardener, Flower, and Rough; or robbers, as Debenham, 
" King, Marsh, Cauchis, Gilbert, Massey, &c. f while not a 
" few of them retracted their errors, as Bilney, Taylor, Was- 
" salia, and died, to all appearance, catholics.'' 

There appears to be reason to think, that Mary's bishops, in 
general, did not promote the persecution. Little blame seems 
imputable to cardinal Pole, or bishop Tunstal ; more is charge- 
able on Gardiner, the bishop of Winchester and chancellor ; 
the greatest part of the odium fell on Banner. Doctor Lin- 
gard suggests some observations, which render it very pro- 
bable, that neither Gardiner nor Bonner were quite so guilty as 
they have been generally represented. 

It should not be forgotten, that Alphonsus de Castro, a 
Spanish friar, and confessor to Phillip, in a sermon preached 
before the court, condemned these proceedings in the most 
pointed manner,^ as contrary both to the text and the spirit of 
the gospel. He said, that " it was not by severity, but by 
" mildness, that men were to be brought into the fold of 
" Christ ; and that it was not the duty of bishops to seek the 
'' death, but to instruct the ignorance of their misguided bre- 
'' thren." — " Many," says doctor Lingard, " were at a loss to 
" account for the discourse ; whether it was the spontaneous 
" effort of the friar, or had been suggested to him by the poli- 
" cy of Phillip, or by the humanity of cardinal Pole, or by the 
" repugnance of the bishops : it made, however, a deep impres- 
" sion." The preacher was afterwards advanced to a bishop- 
ric in Spain. Doctor Lingard also shows, that the discussion 
related by HumeJ to have taken place between cardinal Pole 
and Gardiner, on the intended persecution, is altogether ima- 

* Letter it. 

tStrype, iii. 209. * 

I Chapter xxxvii. 



XIV.] MARY. 177 

ginary ; and that there is no foundation for Burnet's assertion, 
copied by Hume, that the instructions given to the magistrates, 
to watch over the public peace, and, for that purpose, to appre- 
hend the propagators of seditious reports, and the preachers of 
seditious doctrines, was an attempt to introduce the inquisi- 
tion. He also shows, that there is no truth in the tale of the 
martyrdoms of the three women of Guernsey. 

" After every allowance," says doctor Lingard, " it will be 
" found, that, in the space of four years, two hundred persons 
" perished in the flames for religious opinions ; a number, at 
" the contemplation of which the mind is struck with horror, 
" and learns to bless the legislation of a more tolerant age, in 
" which dissent from established forms, though in some coun- 
" tries still punished with civil disabilities, is nowhere liable to 
" the penalties of death." 

You mention, in the highest tprms of praise, the fortitude 
with which the Marian martyrs, as you call them, sustained 
the flames which consumed them. I admire it as much as 
you ; but was not the fortitude of the episcopalian martyrs, in 
Scotland, in the reign of Charles H.,''*' equally heroic ^ and, com- 
paring the demeanor of the Marian martyrs in their sufferings, 
with the demeanor of the Elizabethan martyrs in theirs, will 
these suflfer by the comparison ? 

I have already declared that these sanguinary executions 
cannot be justified ; yet, it should not be forgotten, that simi- 
lar guilt is justly imputable to many sovereigns, some of whom 
enjoy a considerable portion of historic fame; that there was 
not, at this time, a protestant country in Europe, in which si- 
milar executions did not take place ; or one, among the primi- 
tive reformers, by whom religious persecution was not justi- 
fied ; and that some, who were executed in the reign of queen 

* Laing's History of Scotknd, book vii. & vii;. 



\n FOX. [Letter 

Mary for heresy, might have been executed for treason, — oth- 
er sovereigns, more politically, but certainly not more justly, 
converted what they termed heresy into treason, and punished 
the convicted heretic, not as an heretic, but as a traitor. 

You begin your account of the reign of Mary by informing 
us, that "the Suffolk men w^ere the first who declared for 
" queen Mary ; that the protestant religion had taken root 
" among them ; and that they had obtained a promise from her, 
" that no alteration should be made in the religion which her 
" brother had established." Doctor Lingard has sufficiently 
shown that no such promise was made. Mr. John Gage, in 
his "History and Antiquities of Hengrave in Suffolk^'^'^ — the 
work of a gentleman and a scholar, — has inserted Mary's pro- 
clamation to the men of Suffolk : it contains no such promise ; 
and they refer to none, in the long petition which they after- 
wards presented to Mary in favour of their religion. 

I have now to mention an instance, in which, to aggravate 
the conduct of queen Mary's government, and the odium which 
you think it should bring upon the roman-catholics, you intro- 
duce a perfect fancy piece. You tell us, that, " on the day on 
*' which Ridley and Latimer suffered at Oxford, the duke of 
*^ Norfolk dined with Gardiner; and that the dinner was de- 
" layed some hours, till the bishop's servant arrived from Ox- 
*^ ford, post-haste, with tidings that he had seen fire set to 
" them ; that Gardiner went exultingly to the duke of Norfolk, 
" with the news, and said, 'Now let us go to dinner;' that 
" before he rose from table he was stricken with a painful dis- 
" ease, and being carried to his bed, lay there in intolerable tor- 
^ ments for fifteen days," . . . and died. This tale was quickly 
refuted. The author of Fox's life, in the Biographia Britan- 
nica^ mentions it " among the many facts, in the relation of 
" which Mr. Fox is not to be depended upon." — "To disprove 



XIV.] FATHER PERSONS. 179 

" this tragical story, it may be sufficient to observe, that Gar- 
" diner appeared in the house of lords after he is reported to 
'• have been seized with the mortal distemper ; and the old 
" duke of Norfolk had been dead above a year, when Fox 
" makes him at dinner with the bishop of Winchester; for he 
" died at Framlergham Castle, September 1554, and was sue- 
" ceeded by his grandson, who could not then be an old duJce^ 
'' as the story says. As to Gardiner, he died of the gout, and 
" not of a suppression of urine, as Fox says." — The import- 
ant epithet " old^'^'' by which the duke of Norfolk is described, 
you omit. — The falsehood of the story was noticed by doctor 
Lingard ;* still it found its place in the first edition of your 
work. Articles afterwards appeared in different newspapers, 
showing the falsehood of Fox's narrative : you have, however, 
retained it in your second edition : — and long may it there re- 
main, as proof of the little reliance that should be placed on 
those writers, who place their trust in Fox. 

You collect several contumelious expressions, which father 
Persons, in his Examination of your favourite author has ap- 
plied to many of the sufferers in the reign of queen Mary. 
Supposing your representation of them to be accurate, I sin- 
cerely condemn them ; but are they as objectionable as those 
which father Fox, — you have informed us, that queen Eliza- 
beth distinguished him by that appellation, — or, (I am sorry to 
add,) — as those which you yourself, throughout your work, in- 
cessantly apply to us } I learn from you, that father Persons 
calls the generality of the sufferers ''contemptible and pitiful 
" rabblement, . . . obscure and unlearned fellows, . . . noxi- 
" ous, wilful beasts, . . . artificers, spinsters, and the like peo- 
^ pie." I wish father Persons had used no offensive expres* 
sion : '' Res est sacra miser :" tlie sufferings, — I willingly add, 

♦Note (D.) p. 100 & 106. 



1^0 MODERN CONCILiATION. [Letter 

— the unjust sufferings of those, to whom he applies them, 
should have led him, whatever were his own opinion of the me- 
rits of their case, to mention them with tenderness. But how 
do you speak of us and our religion ? There scarcely is a 
chapter, in either of your two volumes, which does not contain 
some expressions much more opprobrious than any used by 
father Persons. It should also be taken into account, that fa- 
ther Persons wrote in the days of fierce controversy ; that he 
had before his eyes the racks and the gibbets, by which his bre- 
thren in faith had suffered, were then suffering, or were to suf- 
fer. Does not this greatly extenuate the bitterness of his pen } 
' — You write in an age of temper and philosophy ; — when de- 
cency and politeness have banished polemic abuse from all the 
liberal parts of society ; when oblivion of past animosities is 
universally recommended ; when the mention of irritating sub- 
jects is avoided; when all denominations of christians wish for 
good humour, for mutual forbearance and charity ; when some 
of the mast amiable and most wise of your contemporaries have 
advocated the abolition of the penal code against the roman- 
catholics ; when those, who think that the time for it is not ar- 
rived, avow their wish for its arrival, and ardently and anxi- 
ously exhort both parties to goodwill, to kindness, to all that 
can sooth, and all that can conciliate : — In the midst of this 
general disposition to unity, — you, — a gentleman and a scho- 
lar, — ^have cooly and deliberately compiled a thousand pages, 
admirably calculated to revive past animosities, to inflame pre- 
judice, to perpetuate discord ; and, — by holding in full view all 
tiiat you think likely to injure us, and concealing almost all that 
you think likely to do us honor, — have endeavoured to ruin 
our moral and religious Character, and to hold us to our fellow- 
subjects as an abomination. In this, where is wisdom, where 
is good policy, where is charity.? How different is it from the 



XIV.] MODERN CONCILIATION, 181 

conduct and the manners, — I will not say of Pitt, of Fox, of 
Burke, of Canning, — of our most honourable and most estima- 
ble adversaries, lord Liverpool in the upper, and Mr. Peele in 
the lower, house ! How different is the spirit of Your Book 
from that which animated our sovereign, when he invited the 
duke of Norfolk, — a man, who does honour to men ; but a 
member of that religious community which it pleases you to 
vilify, — to officiate at his coronation ? which led him to carry 
the olive branch to Ireland ? which led him to sanction the act 
for dispensing with the earl marshd's obligation for taking the 
oath of supremacy ? and the act for reversing the attainder of 
lord Stafford ? For these exertions of kindness, of enlarged 
wisdom, and of liberal policy, eight millions of his majesty's 
British subjects bless his name : — there is not one of them 
who does not read your book with every feeling of insulted 
integrity : — and so confident are they of the universal goodwill 
of their fellow-subjects to them, that they are quite assured 
that, if you should offer the services of your pen to any of those, 
who, in either house, oppose, or rather seek to postpone cath- 
olic emancipation, — half-a-dozen members in both houses 
would not be found who would accept your offer. — " The time 
^' is gone by," would be the almost unanimous voice ; — " no 
^ good subject now reads with pleasure any abuse of the ro- 
'' man-catholic church, or its members. Take it to the admir- 
^' ers of father Fox! his mantle has descended to you! But 
^ don't wear it! you are qualified for much better things.'' 



16 



182 CRANMER [Letter 

XIV. 2. 

Archhishop Cranmer- and Bishop Latimer. 

That archbishop Cranmer and bishop Latimer were guilty 
of high treason, by an active co-operation, in the attempt of the 
duke of Northumberland, - to place lady Jane Grey on the 
throne, to the exclusion of Mary, their lawful sovereign, and 
of the princess Elizabeth, the presumptive heir, is universally 
allowed. My opinion, that the sentence which, after their 
treason had been pardoned, condemned them to the flames for 
heresy, was execrable, I have explicitly averred in my "Histo- 
rical Memoirs of the English, Irish, and Scottish Catholics :'' 
I now repeat it. And, in respect to Cranmer, I also willingly 
repeat, that his protection of the princess Mary, from the fury 
of her father; his exertions to save sir Thomas More, bishop 
Fisher, and lord Cromwell ; his long resistance to the passing 
of the six sanguinary articles ; and his encouragement of lite- 
rature, are entitled to a high degree of praise : no person can 
give it more willingly than I do, or wish more sincerely that 
his failings should rest interred with his bones. But when he 
is described as a model of virtue, and every effort of composi- 
tion is used to exalt him, at the expense of the roman-catho- 
lics and their religion, and by highly-coloured relations of his 
virtues and sufferings, to raise a storm of public indignation 
against us ; — then, 

Facit indignatio versum, — 

And I must ask some questions. 

Although he adopted the Lutheran principles so early as his 
residence in Germany, on the business of the divorce, he yet 



XIV.] AND LATIMER. 1S3 

continued, during the fifteen subsequent years of Henry's reign, 
in the most public profession of the catholic religion, the arti- 
cle of the supremacy of the pope alone excepted ; — was this 
justifiable before God or man ? 

Although, when he was consecrated archbishop of Canter- 
bury, he took the customary oath of obedience to the see of 
Rome, did he not, just before he took it, retire into a private 
room, and protest against it? — was this honourable? 

Although he subscribed, and caused his clergy to subscribe, 
the six articles, the third and fourth of which enjoined celiba- 
cy to the clergy, and the observance of the vow of chastity, was 
he not married, and did he not continue to cohabit with his 
wife ? — was not this dissimulation ? 

Although he knew Anne Boleyn was under no pre-contract 
of marriage, did he not, to use bishop Burnet's expression, ex- 
tort from her, standing, as she then did, on the very verge of 
. eternity, a confession of the existence of such a contract ? — was 
not this culpable subserviency to his master's cruelties ? — ^was 
it not prevailing on the unhappy woman to die with a lie upon 
her lips ? 

Was he not instrumental in bringing Lambert, Anne Askew, 
Joan Bocher, Van Parr, and others, both catholics and anabap- 
tists, to the stake ? 

Did he not make too successful exertions to induce the in- 
fant Edward to sign the sentence for Joan Bocher's condemna- 
tion ? 

Was he not, in all these instances, guilty, both of the theory 
and practice of religious persecution ? 

Did he not, previously to Henry's marriage with Anne of 
Cleves, declare, that the negotiations for her marriage, with a 
prince of the house of Lorraine, were not a lawful impediment 
to her marriage with Henry? yet, did he not, within six 



184 CRANMER [Letter 

months after the marriage, declare, that they had created such 
an impediment ? — was not this a deliberate and solemn un- 
truth ? Did he not then solemnize the monarch's adulterous 
marriage with lady Katharine Howard ? — was not this a sacri- 
lege ? 

And, finally, notwithstanding the undoubted rights of the 
princesses Mary and Elizabeth to the throne, did he not, on 
the death of their roy^l brother, strive to exclude them from it, 
and to place lady Jane Grey upon it ? — was not this both in- 
gratitude and high treason ? 

Can you justify his conduct in any one of these inslances^ 
without incurring the flagrant guilt of making " vice, virtue ?" 

Still, the sentence which, after he had been pardoned for his 
treason, condemned him to the flames for heresy, was, — I re- 
peat the word, — execrable. His firmness under the torture, to 
which it consigned him, has seldom been surpassed : it pre- 
sents an imposing example, and we then willingly forget what 
history records against him. But when w^e read in the Biogra- 
phia Britannicaj and in other works, that " he was the glory 
" of the English nation, and the ornament of the reformation ;" 
and prejudice against the roman-catholics is, by these repre- 
sentations of his virtues, sought to be aggravated, — his mis>- 
deeds rush on our recollection ; we are astonished at the effect 
of party spirit, and the intrepidity of his biographers and enco- 
miasts. 

As to Latimer J whom you so highly celebrate ; — was he not 
more remarkable for inconsistency, than almost any other man 
with whose biography you are acquainted? Was he not first 
known by his attack upon the doctrines of Melancthon, and 
the other German reformers ? then by his advocation of these 
doctrines ? then by his rejection of them, in obedience to the 
commands of Wolsey ? then by his re-assump^ion of them ? 



XIV.] AND LATIMER. 185 

then by his second rejection of them, and his craving pardon 
for them, on his knees, to sooth Henry VIII. ? then by his se- 
cond re-assumption of them in the reign of Edward VI. ? Was 
he not actively and prominently engaged in the treasons against 
Mary? Is such a man a hero ? You are a classical scholar; 
but surely, when you paneg}Tised Latimer, you had not in 
your mind the saying of the antient, — that when, in any na- 
tion, exuberant praise of a mediocrity of virtue became com- 
mon, the existence in it of real virtue becomes questionable. 

Compare his conduct with that of More, Fisher, or any of the 
three hundred persons who suffered death under your* penal 
laws. 

Crimination is not my disposition ; I trust it is not my cha- 
racter : on this occasion, you, and those whom you have con- 
descended to copy, (for I am sensible they are greatly your 
inferiors,) have forced it on me. Now, therefore, after hear- 
ing what I have been thus forced to say, permit me to ask, 
whether, in your opinion, those who provoke discussions of 
the lives and characters of the two prelates I have mentioned, 
are real friends to their memories ? 

I possess a picture-book for children, published by an emi- 
nent protestant clergyman, now living, in which the fires of 
Smithfield are vividly represented. Is not this most impru- 
dent? And, as it contains no representations of the racks, the 
gibbets, or the fires, by which the roman-catholics suffered, in 
the reigns of queen Elizabeth and her three successors, is not 
the representation both partial and unjust? It is time that this 
wretched ribaldry should cease. I make you the same offer 
as doctor Milner made to the late doctor Sturges : — ^Let pro- 
testants cease to reproach the roman-catholics with Mary's 
fires, and roman-catholics shall be equally silent on the san- 
guinary code of Elizabeth, and the savage executions under it. 
16* 



18e MARY. [Letter 

XIV. 3. 

Character of Queen Marfs Reign. 

You boldly term it execrable : I hope that when you wrote 
this word, you had not read doctor Lingard's account of it, and 
the excellent summary and observations by which his account 
of it is concluded. If you had, it would appear to me wonderful 
that you should express yourself in the manner you have 
done. The whole passage is too long for insertion ; I shall 
transcribe the first page. 

" The foulest blot on the character of this queen is her long 
'' and cruel persecution of the reformers. The sufferings of 
'^ the victims naturally begat an antipathy to the woman by 
" whose authority they were inflicted. It is, however, but 
" fair to recollect, what I have already noticed, that the extir- 
" pation of erroneous doctrine was inculcated as a duty by the 
" leaders of every religious party. Mary only practised what 
" they taught. It was her misfortune, rather than her fault, 
" that she was not more enlightened than the wisest of her 
" contemporaries. 

^' With this exception, she has been ranked by the more 
" moderate of the reformed writers among the best, though not 
" the greatest of our princes. They have borne honourable 
" testimony to her virtues : have allotted to her the praise of 
" piety and clemency, of compassion for the poor, and liberal- 
" ity to the distressed ; and have recorded her solicitude to 
" restore to opulence the families that had been unjustly de- 
" prived of their possessions by her father and brother, and to 
" provide for the wants of the parochial clergy, who had been 
" reduced to penury by the spoliations of the last government. 



XIV.] MARY. 187 

" It is acknowledged, that her moral character is beyond re- 
'^ proof. It extorted respect from all; even from the most vir- 
" ulent of her enemies. The ladies of her household copied 
" the conduct of their mistress; and the decency of Mary's 
" court was often mentioned with applause, by those who la- 
" mented the dissoluteness which prevailed in that of her suc- 
" cessor." 

To the eternal praise of the Irish roman-catholics be it re- 
membered, that, in the reign of queen Mary, they totally ab- 
stained from persecution. — " In the reign of queen Mary," 
says sir William Parnel, " though the religious feelings of Irish 
^ catholics, and their feelings as men, had been treated with 
" very little ceremony during the two preceding reigns, they 
" made a wise and moderate use of their ascendancy. They 
" entertained no resentment for the past, they raised no plans 
" for future domination. — The Irish roman-catholic bi- 
"gots!! — The Irish roman-catholics are the only 
" sect that ever resumed power, without exercising 
" vengeance."* 



* Historical Apology. 



188 ELIZABETH. [Letter 



LETTER XV. 



QUEEN ELIZABETH. 



Sir, 

We now reach the most important reign in the histories both 
of your church and mine since the reformation. I shall men- 
tion in this letter, — L The establishment of the protestant reli- 
gion in the reign of queen Elizabeth ; and notice some state- 
ments and observations respecting it in " the Book of the 
" Church ." — IL Then insert a summary of the laws passed 
in her reign against the roman-catholics : — IIL Then state the 
executions of the roman-catholics under the sanguinary part of 
this code: — IV. Then consider the arguments offered in justifi- 
cation of these executions, from the general disloyalty of the 
roman-catholics : — V. From their persecuting principles : — VL 
And from their alleged plots : — VIL I shall then notice what 
you entirely omit mentioning, their exemplary conduct while 
England was threatened by the Spanish Armada : — VIIL And 
conclude the letter with observations on some other charges 
contained in your letter. 



XV.] ELIZABETH. 189 



XV. 1. 

The Establishment of the Protestant Religion in the Reign of 
Queen Elizabeth. — Observation on some Statements respect- 
ing it in " the Book of the ChnrchJ^^ 

You begin the chapter, which I now have under considera- 
tion, by informing us, that " Elizabeth's life had been in immi- 
" nent danger during her sister's reign ;" and by noticing "the 
" severity with which she had been treated." But can you 
read the evidence produced by Doctor Lingard,* of the concur- 
rence of Elizabeth in Wyat's treason, and the earl of Devon- 
shire's conspiracy, without believing her guilt .'' Can you say, 
that the evidence for it is not stronger than that upon which 
she caused the unfortunate Mary of Scotland to be executed ? 
You then inform us, that " the cruelties of the preceding reign 
" were regarded with abhorrence by all except those who had 
" been instrumejital in them." The number of those must 
have been extremely small; justice, therefore, forbids that these 
cruelties should be imputed to the general body of catholics; 
and calls upon you to retract, in the next edition of your work, 
your repeated intimations to the contrary in the present. 

Notwithstanding the dislike of Elizabeth, which I must ne- 
cessarily feel, I have never read Heylin's account of her tri- 
umphant progress from the tower, without participating in that 
brilliant hour of joy. To see the descendant of a hundred 
kings, in the prime of life, and adorned with every accomplish- 
ment, thus suddenly pass, amidst a general and jubilant multi- 
tude, from a prison to a throne, is one of the brightest scenes 

♦Vol. V. c. 1. 



190 ELIZABETH. [Letter 

that history displays. Most feelingly do I enter into it, and for- 
get, at the moment, the multiplied miseries which it brought, 
almost immediately afterwards, on numbers of those whose 
memories I must ever revere. 

But did not the duty, which you owed to history, require 
that you should mention the loyal conduct of the leading ro- 
man-catholic clergy and laity on the accession of Elizabeth to- 
the throne of England; and contrast it with the conduct of the 
protestant clergy and laity on the accession of Mary ? Cran- 
mer, Ridley and Latimer, and most of those who took a lead- 
ing part in the religious innovations in the reign of Edward VL 
supported the pretension of lady Jane Grey against their law- 
ful sovereign. Northumberland's rebellion in favor of lady 
Jane was succeeded by Wyat's ; and many of the leaders of 
each were protestants. At the moment of Mary's decease, both 
houses of parliament were sitting. Information of the event 
being brought to the house of lords, they sent a message to 
the house of commons, requesting their attendance. When 
the commons arrived. Heath, the lord chancellor, the archbish- 
op of York, (the see of Canterbury being then vacant,) an- 
nounced the event ; he observed, that the succession of the 
crown belonged of right to the princess Elizabeth, and that she 
should be instantly proclaimed queen of England. The pro- 
clamation of her title immediately took place ; first, in West- 
minster Hall, before the assembled lords and commons, and 
then, at the same place, before the lord mayor, the aldermen, 
and the companies of the city. The news reached the princess 
at Hatfield : she proceeded to London. At Highgate she was 
met by all the roman-catholic bishops : all, except Oglethorpe, 
the bishop of Carlisle, by whom she was crowned, refused to 
assist at the ceremony of her coronation. They considered it 
to be certain, either that she would not take or would not ob- 



XV.] ELIZABETH. 191 

serve the oath, which the kings of England took at their coro- 
nation, — " to maintain the laws, honour, peace and privileges of 
" the church, as in the time or grant of king Edward the Con- 
" fessor." But the bishops did not make the smallest opposi- 
tion to her coronation ; they immediately did homage to her, 
and acknowledged her tide to the crown. They afterwards 
saw her break her coronation oath, and establish the protes- 
tant church on the ruins of the national religion. At these mea- 
sures they sighed ; but they sighed in silence; not a single act 
of a treasonable, a seditious, or even a disaffected tendency was 
ever imputed to their conduct upon this occasion. 

May I not also ask, whether historic truth did not require you 
to mention the violence which the court party found it necessa- 
ry to use in the election of members to serve in the first parlia- 
ment which sat in the reign of queen Elizabeth ? Five candi- 
dates were nominated by the court to each borough, and three 
to each county ; and, by the authority of the sheriffs, the mem- 
bers were chosen from among these candidates. Can it be 
said, that, with a house of commons thus constructed, the par- 
liament which established the reformation, was constitutionally 
formed ? 

Did not historic truth also require, that you should mention 
the opposition of the clergy to the legal establishment of the 
protestant faith ? and that all the bishops, both the houses of 
convocation, and both the universities, strenuously objected to 
it ? These are important facts : was it proper to suppress them ? 
You assert, that " the policy of the romanists fortunately 
'' accorded with the views of government ; for that, when it 
'' was perceived how well and easily the places of the deposed 
" bishops had been supplied, the party changed their system, 
" and *determined to retain what benejices they held at the ea:- 
>' pense of outward conformity^ thinking the best service they 



192 ELIZABETH. [Letter 

" could render to the papal cause, was to keep possession of 
" their posts, in the hope and expectation of better times. The 
" double purpose would thus be answered, of keeping protest- 
" ant ministers out, and secretly fostering in their parishion- 
" ers a predilection for all the old superstitions ; and their po- 
" licy was, by this means, reconciled with their interests. With 
" such unanimity did they act upon this deceitful system^ that 
" of 9,400 beneficed clergy, only 177 resigned their prefer- 
" ments, rather than acknowledge the queen's supremacy." 

The charge which you bring against the roman-catholic 
clergy in this place, is altogether unfounded. The outward 
conformity of which you accuse them, was never practised by 
them: no roman-catholic clergyman, who retained his bene- 
fice, could either officiate as minister, or take the oath of su- 
premacy, without incurring the guilt of apostacy, both in his 
own opinion and feelings, and in the opinion and feeling of the 
whole catholic world. If he had urged, in his defence, that 
he did it with the deceitful views you insinuate, liis conduct 
would have beeen more strongly reprobated. I believe the 
whole of your statement to be a fable; I never heard the charge 
which it intimates, until I found it in your work : it remains 
for you to prove the facts, or produce the authorities, upon 
which you make the assertion. 

I conjecture, that, in the hurry of composition, you have 
substituted an occasional conformity of your own imagination, 
for one of a very different nature, which, for some time, was 
practised by some lay roman-catholics. These, to avoid the 
dreadful penalties of recusancy, attended the service in thepro- 
tesfant churches on Sundays, but without professing themselves 
to be protestants, and without participating in the service fur- 
ther than by mere personal attendance upon it. On the law- 
fiilne&s of this proceeding, a considerable difference prevailed, 



XV.] ELIZABETH. 193 

from the first, among the English catholic divines : it contin- 
ued till the year 1562, when some of the theologians, assem- 
bled at the council of Trent, were consulted upon it, and pro- 
nounced it unlawful.* Before this time, both cardinal Allen 
and father Persons had declared against it, in the most explicit 
manner ; and each had published a treatise in support of his 
opinion. 

I am not surprised by your assertion, that, of 9,400 ecclesi- 
astical incumbents, 177 only resigned their preferments, on the 
accession of queen Elizabeth, as I have met with this assertion 
in several respectable authors ; but an attentive consideration 
of it, has convinced me that it is erroneous. Wood | informs 
us, that, " after the catholics had left the university of Oxford, 
^' upon the alteration of religion, it was so empty that there 
" was very seldom a sermon preached in the university church. 
'' The university," he adds, " seemed to be' destroyed." So 
lately as 1 563, the speaker of the house of commons complain- 
ed, that " many of the schools and benefices were seized, the 
" education of youth disappointed, and the succours for know- 
" ledge cut off. This," said the speaker, " 1 dare aver, that 
" the schools in England are fewer than formerly by one hun- 
^' dred, and many of them but slenderly stocked ; and this is 
*' one reason, the number of men is so remarkably diminished. 
" The universities are decayed, and great market towns are 
'' without either school or preacher."J You know how fre- 
quently such representations occur in the histories of those 
times : could the fact have been as they represenir it, if your 
assertion had been founded ? Besides, — I have before me doc- 
tor Bridge water's ''Concertatio^'^^ published in 1594 : he gives 

* Dodd's Church Hist. vol. 2, p. 24. 

t Cited in Dodd's Church Hist. vol. 2,p. 319. 

t Collier's Ecc. Hist. vol. 2, p. 480. 

17 



194 ELIZABETH. [Letter 

in it the names, and the rank or condition in life, of 1,200 ro- 
man-catholics, who had been deprived of their livings or es- 
tates, or had been imprisoned or banished for their religion, 
previously to the year 1588, the period when the persecution 
of the catholics began to rise to its greatest height. He does 
not include, in this list, those who suffered death for their reli- 
gion ; these he had mentioned, and had described their several 
sufferings in the former parts of his work. He declares, that 
he was far from having named all the sufferers, and that he 
had mentioned the names of those only, whose sufferings had 
come to his personal knowledge : many, whose names he 
mentions, died in prison, and some under sentence of death. 
Is not there ground, therefore, for questioning the truth of the 
assertions I have noticed ? 

You mention, with praise, the moderation of the conduct of 
queen Elizabeth, in respect to the roman-catholics, at the be- 
ginning of her reign. 1 agree with you, in lauding the feel- 
ings which induced her to direct, that the supplication, — 
'' From the tyranny of the bishop of Rome, and all his detest- 
" able enormities, deliver us, O Lord !" — should be omitted 
from the litany. I also think, that her directions, that the sa- 
cramental bread should be kept in the form of wafers ; and 
that the language of the article, which affirmed the real pre- 
sence, should be framed in ambiguous language, proceeded 
from a desire of making the pale of her new church as com- 
prehensive as possible. May I be permitted to add, without 
offence, that the consideration which I have given to the his- 
tor}'' of queen Elizabeth has led me to suppose, that the queen 
was indifferent to all religions ; that her taste inclined to the 
roman-catholic, and her interest to the protestant ; that Leices- 
ter, Cecil and Walsingham, her principal ministers, were influ- 
enced, in their opposition to the catholic religion, both by in- 



XV.] LAWS AGAINST, &c. 195 

clination and interest ; that they had a strong bias towards the 
puritan faith and discipline ; and that they possessed, in a great 
degree, — ^ degree perhaps, much greater than their sovereign, — 
the spirit of intolerance, which tarnished the character of the 
first reformers ? 



XV. 2. 

Summary of the Laws 'passed in the Reign of Queen Eliza- 
leth against Roman-catholics. 

I SHALL first mention, as succinctly as possible, the prmci- 
pal laws which were passed against the roman-catholics dur- 
ing the reign of queen Elizabeth ; then show, in what manner 
they were executed. 

1. By an act passed in the first year of her reign^ and 
usually called the " Act of Supremacy ^'^'^ archbishops, bish- 
ops, and other ecclesiastical officers and ministers, and gene- 
rally all persons receiving the queen's fee, were required to 
take the oath of supremacy prescribed by it : such as refused 
were incapacitated from holding any office ; and all who denied 
the queen's supremacy were, for the first offence, punishable 
by forfeiture of goods and chattels; for the second, subjected 
to the penalties of a premunire ; and, for the third, rendered 
guilty of high treason. 

It is proper to observe, in this place, that the oath of supre- 
macy, prescribed by this act, was essentially different from the 
oath of supremacy in present use. By the latter oath, the per- 
son swears negatively, that no foreign prince or potentate hath 
any authority within this realm ; by the former, he swore af- 
firmatively, that the queen was head of the church. The pre- 
sent oath is taken without scruple by the protestant dissen- 



196 LAWS AGAINST [Letter 

ters ; and it was to favour them, that the negative form was 
adopted in the reign of William III. : the former oath was as 
inconsistent with the principles of the protestant dissenters, as 
it was with the principles of the roman-catholics. 

I beg leave to call your attention to this observation, when 
you prepare a new edition of your work. 

2. By another act, passed in the first year of queen Eliza- 
beth^ — then usually called " The Act of Uniformity ^^"^ — all 
ministers of the church were enjoined to use the Book of 
Common Prayer, under certain penalties ; others were inflicted 
on those who spoke in derogation of it, or prevented its use : 
Those who absented themselves from church, were subjected 
to a forfeiture of one shilling to the poor for every Sunday up- 
on which they should so absent themselves ; and of twenty 
pounds to the king, if they continued such absence for a month 
together ; and, if they kept in their house an inmate guilty of 
such absence, they were to forfeit ten pounds for every such 
month : Every fourth Sunday of absence was held to complete 
the month ; and thus, in relation to these penalties, thirteen 
months were supposed to occur in every year. 

S. By an act passed in the fifth year of the queen^ persons 
maintaining the authority of the pope, were subjected to the 
penalties of a premunire ; and ecclesiastical persons, fellows 
of colleges in the university, and officers of courts of justice, 
were compellable to take the oath of supremacy, under the 
same penalty of premunire for the first offence, and the penal- 
ties of high treason for the second : and persons who had said 
or heard mass, might have the oath tendered to ttiem ; and 
their refusal of it was punishable by the same penalties. 

4. The act of the thirteenth of her majesty^ enacted, that 
persons who affirmed that queen Elizabeth was not a lawful so- 
vereign ; or that any other had a preferable tide ; or that she 



XV.] ROMAN-CATHOLICS. 197 

was an heretic, schismatic, or infidel ; or that the right to the 
crown and the succession could not be determined by law ; 
and persons bringing or receiving bulls, briefs, or absolutions, 
from the pope, — were to be deemed guilty of high treason ; 
their aiders or abettors were made guilty of a premunire ; per- 
sons concealing them were punishable for misprision of trea- 
son; and priests bringing Agnus Deis, or similar articles, bless- 
ed by the pope, were subjected to premunire. 

The pecuniary mulcts for recusancy were rigidly required. 
The money thus raised from the catholics amounted to a large 
sum : it was chiefly levied on the poor, the rich purchasing, 
from Elizabeth, dispensations from attendance at the protestant 
service. Mr. Andrews* computes the annual amount of the mo- 
ney, thus received by Elizabeth for dispensations, at twenty 
thousand pounds. 

5. The act of the twenty-third of Queen Elizabeth subject- 
ing all persons, pretending to have power to withdraw her ma- 
jesty's subjects from their allegiance, or from the established 
religion, or moving them to promise obedience to the see of 
Rome, or any other potentate, to the punishment of high trea- 
so.n : Persons so withdrawn, their aiders and abettors, and per- 
sons knowing of such practices and not disclosing them, were 
rendered guilty of misprison of treason. Every priest saying 
mass, was to forfeit two hundred marks ; every person hearing 
it was to forfeit one hundred ; and each was to be imprisoned 
for a year, and till he had paid the fine. This statute also ag- 
gravated the penalties of recusancy, and contained other severe 
inflictions. 

6. The still severer act of the twenty-seventh year of her 
majesty^s reign, enacted, 1. That all Jesuits, seminary and oth- 
er priests, within the realm, should depart out of it, under pain 

* Continuation of Henry ^s Hist. vol. 3, p. 35. 
17* 



198 COURT OF [Letter 

of being judged traitors, and suffering death, as in the case of 
treason ; and Jesuits, seminary and other priests, coming into 
the realm, were subjected to the same penahies: 2. Persons re- 
ceiving or maintaining them, were to be adjudged felons, with- 
out benefit of clergy : 3. Persons sending money to the semi- 
naries, or to any of their inmates, were subjected to the penal- 
ties of a premunire : 4. And persons knowing of any such 
priest, and not discovering him within twelve days, were to be 
fined and imprisoned at the king's pleasure. — It should be ob- 
served, that the punishment of premunire^ mentioned in this and 
the other statutes, to which 1 have referred, was, that, from the 
time of conviction, the convict should be out of the protection 
of the king, and his lands and goods forfeited to him ; and that 
his body should remain at the king's pleasure. 

7. To these inflictions we must add, the court of high com- 
mission^ established by queen Elizabeth, under the provisions 
of an act passed in the first year of her reign. Agreeing in lit- 
tle else, Hume* and Neale^ perfectly accord in their accounts 
of the unconstitutional nature and arbitrary rules of this tribunal, 
and of (the enormities of its proceedings. " It was," says the 
former of these writers, " a real inquisition, attended with all 
" the iniquities as well as cruelties inseparable from that tribu- 
" nal." It was aimed against all dissenters from the establish- 
ed religion ; but the roman-cathoiics were the principal suf- 
ferers under it. Permit me to express some surprise, that I do 
not find in the present chapter of your work, a single word of 
bitter condemnation of the institution of this unconstitutional, 
cruel, and iniquitous tribunal. 

You say, that " the proceedings of Elizabeth's government, 
^' both towards the papists and the puritans, were grounded 

*Flist. of England, c. 12. 

t History of the Puritans, vol. 1. p. 10. 



XV.] HIGH COMMISSION. 199 

'' upon these principles : that conscience is not to be constrain- 
" ed,but won by force of truth, with the aid of time, and use of 
" all good means of persuasion ; and that cases of conscience, 
" when they exceed their bounds, and grow to be matter of 
" faction, lose their nature ; and however they may be color- 
" ed with the pretence of religion, are then to be restrained and 
" punished." 

But, — had faction been proved against any, when the first 
laws against recusancy were published ; or when the court of 
high commission was established ? Do you not, in this place, 
to justify the penalties for recusancy, unwaringly adopt the most 
objectionable tenet of intolerance : that theological opinion is 
to be the test of civil allegiance ? And thus make it just 
and fair to infer, from a person's holding a theological opin- 
ion contrary to the religion of the state, that his allegiance 
is unsound ; and that he should, therefore, be punished for the 
unsoundness of it, by pains, penalties and disabilities ? It was 
in consequence of the adoption of this principle, that the roman- 
catholics and presbyterians suffered in England during the 
reign of queen Elizabeth, and her three next successors ; and 
that presbyterians suffered in Scotland during the reign of 
Charles II. You say the puritans grew to matter of faction : 
But which preceded the other ? did the law precede the fac- 
tion, or the faction precede the law ? 

You treat the points in difference between the established 
church and the puritans as trifles; or, as you call them, after 
Calvin, " tolerable fooleries," But who is to be the judge, in 
these cases, of what is important, and what is trifling and fool- 
ery ? If you say the state,— then the Roman magistrate just- 
ly punished the christians for what he considered their trifling 
and foolish non-conformity to the pontifical law of Rome. If 
you deny this power to the Roman state, but ascribe it to the 



200 NON-CONFORMISTS. [Letter 

English parliament, I call upon you to declare the ground of 
this distinction: if it is, because the latter had the Bible, which 
the Roman state had not, I ask you, why the puritan interpre- 
tation of the Bible should not be thought as good as that of the 
establishment. 

Elizabeth, you intimate, foresaw danger in the principles of 
the puritans. But do principles before they come into action, 
justify actual persecution ? — Besides, — did the principles of the 
puritans amount to more than the principle professed by all 
protestants as the basis of their religion, — that they acknow- 
ledge no divine law but the scriptures ; no interpreter of them 
but the understanding and conscience of the individual who pe- 
ruses them ? 

You mention some calumnies and hearsay stories, printed 
by two Spanish or Portuguese monks : but what are we to say 
to the calumnies against the roman-catholics, respecting the 
fire of London, Oates's plot, and " the hundreds of the ghosts 
" of protestants drowned by the rebels at Portadown bridge, 
" who," as Temple avers in his history of the Irish rebellion, 
" were seen in the river, bolt-upright, and were heard to cry 
" out for revenge on the Irish rebels. One of them," he says, 
" was seen with hands lifted up, and standing in that posture 
" from the twenty-ninth of December to the latter end of the 
" following month." 

Surely it now is full time that all this laughable, but mischiev- 
ous triflmg and foolery, should have an end I 



XV.] SUFFERINGS, &c. 201 



XV. 3. 

Executions of the Roman-catholics under the sanguinary part 
of the Penal Code of Queen Elizaleth. 

I HAVE shortly mentioned their sufferings under the enact- 
ments against recusancy, I now proceed to mention the inflic- 
tions under the sanguinary provisions of some of these acts. 

The total number of those who suffered capitally under them 
is calculated by Dodd, in his Church History, at one hundred 
and ninety-one : further inquiries by doctor Milner increase 
their number to two hundred and four. Fifteen of these, he 
says, were condemned for denying the queen's supremacy; one 
hundred and twenty-six for the exercise of priestly functions ; 
arid the others for being reconciled to the catholic faith, or aid- 
ing or assisting priests. In this list, no person is included who 
was executed for any plot, either real or imaginary, except ele- 
ven, who suffered for the pretended plot of Rheims, or Rome ; 
a plot, which, as doctor Milner justly observes, was so daring a 
forgery, that even Camden, the partial biographer of Elizabeth^ 
allows the sufferers to have been political victims. 

Such then being the number of sufferers, we must feel some 
surprise, when we read in Hume's history, that " the severity 
" of death was sparingly exercised against the priests in the 
" reign of queen Elizabeth;" or your eulogizing account of her 
tolerating principles and proceedings. 

It is observable, that the punishment of treason, by the law 
of England, is, that the offender should be drawn to the gallows, 
hanged by the neck, cut down alive, his entrails taken out 
while he was yet alive, and his head then cut off. Against the 



202 SUFFERINGS OF THE [Letter 

atrocious circumstances attending this punishment, the human- 
ity of the nation has so far interfered, that the offender has 
been generally permitted to remain hanging till he is dead ; but 
this mercy was often denied to the catholics, who suffered un- 
der these laws : often they were cat down alive ; in that state 
ripped open, and their entrails torn out. 

Besides the sufferers whom we have noticed, mention is made 
in the same work of ninety catholic priests or laymen, who 
died in prison during the same reign ; and of one hundred and 
five others who were sent into perpetual banishment. "I say 
" nothing," continues the writer, ''of many more, who were 
" whipped, fined, (the fine for recusancy was twenty pounds,) 
" or stripped of their property, to the utter ruin of their fami- 
" lies. In one night fifty catholic gentlemen, in the county of 
" Lancaster, were suddenly seized and committed to prison, on 
" account of their non-attendance at church. About the same 
" time, I find an equal number of Yorkshire gentlemen lying 
" prisoners in York Castle, on the same account; most of them 
" perished there. These were, every week for a twelvemonth 
" together, dragged by main force to hear the established ser- 
" vice performed in the castle chapel." 

Incredible as it may appear to an English reader, it is un- 
questionably true, that several of those who suffered death, 
and several also who did not suffer capitally, were, previously 
to their trials, inhumanly tortured, — hy the common rack^ by 
which their limbs were stretched with levers, to a length too 
shocking to mention, beyond the natural measure of their 
frame ; — or, the hoop^ called the scavenger's daughter,^ within 
which they were placed, and their bodies bent until the head 
and feet met; — or, by confinement in the Little-ease^ a hole so 
small, that a person could neither stand, sit, or lie straight in 
it ; — or, the iron gauntlet^ a screw that squeezed the hands un- 



XV.] ROMAN CATHOLICS. <20t 

til the bones were crushed; — by needles thrust under the nails 
of the suffers ; — or, by a long deprivation of sustenance. 

It adds to the atrocity of these inflictions, that, in several 
instances, when the sufferers were put to trial, there was no le- 
gal proof established ; and, in some, not even any legal evi- 
dence offered to substantiate the offence of which the parties 
were accused. " It may be almost asserted," says the late lord 
Auckland,* " that, so late as the whole sixteenth century, the 
" first and most essential principles of evidence were either un- 
" known or totally disregarded. Depositions of witnesses, 
" forthcoming if called, but not permitted to be confronted 
" with the prisoner ; written examinations of accomplices liv- 
" ing and amenable ; confessions of convicts lately hanged for 
" the same offence ; hearsays of those convicts, repeated at se- 
" cond-hand from others ; all these formed so many classes of 
'• competent evidence, and were received as such, in the most 
" solemn trials, by very learned judges. It was a common and 
" very lucrative practice of the sheriffs, to return juries sopre- 
" judiced and partial, that, as cardinal Wolsey observed, they 
" would find Abel guilty of the murder of Cain. The judge 
" held his ofBce and income at the pleasure of the prosecutor ; 
" and was often actuated by an intemperate zeal for the sup- 
" port of the charge, as if his indignation of the offence had 
" stifled all tenderness towards the supposed offender." 

" Thus ignorant of the forms and language of the whole 
" process, unassisted by council, unsupported by witnesses, 
"' discountenanced by the court, and baited by the crown law- 
" yers, the poor bewildered prisoners found an eligible refuge 
" in the dreadful moment of conviction." 

Recourse was had to tortures, in order to supply this want 
of legal evidence to convict the accused ; and, at the same time 

♦ Principles of Penal Law. 



204 



FATHER CAMPIAN. [Letter 



to furnish proofs against others. At the end of "CeciPs Exe- 
" cution of Justice^^'^ is usually printed, " Jl Declaration of 
" the favorable dealing of her majestfs commissioners^ ap- 
(>' pointed for the examination of certayne traiterers^ and of 
" tortures unjustly reported to he done upon them for matters 
" ofreligionP It first appeared in print in 1583, in black let- 
ter, and was comprised in six pages quarto. It admits the use 
of torture in these cases, and states the grounds on which it was 
defended. It is inserted in the second volume of the Harleian 
Miscellany^ printed in 1808. 

As a fair specimen of the manner in which the laws, which I 
have mentioned, were executed against the roman-catholics, I 
shall insert an account of the apprehension, trial and execu- 
tion of father Campian. 

The best account of it is to be found in " Doctor Challo- 
" ner^s Memoirs of Missionary Priests^ as well secular as re- 
" gular^ and of other catholics^ of both sexes^ that have suffer- 
" ed Death in England on religious accounts^ from the year 
'' of our Lord 1577 to 1684," two volumes Svo. first printed in 
1741, and since often reprinted. A new edition of this work 
is now in the press of Mr. Ambrose Cuddon, Carthusian-street 
Charterhouse-square : it contains several engravings, showing 
the manner in which the tortures were inflicted ; these, it is 
impossible to behold without shuddering.* Mr. Cuddon has 
inserted in this edition, a translation from the Latin of a diary- 
kept by the Reverend Mr. Rushton, a prisoner in the Tower, 
from 1580 to 1585, in which he gives a description of the va- 
rious modes of torture inflicted on the catholic prisoners dur- 

* " The sight of the instruments of torture produced in Gorden of 
" Earlston, instant madness, by his horror and despair." — Laing's Histo- 
ry of Scotland, vol. 4, p. 141. —Does " the Book of the Church" contain 
one word that reprobates the use of them on the poor innocent priests? 



XV.] FATHER CAMPIAN. ^05 

ing these four years ; and mentions the names of the persons 
upon whom they were inflicted. It was first published in La- 
tin at the end of " Sanderus de Schismate Anglicano, Coloniae 
" Agrippinae, 1678, 8vo,"* 

On the 15th July, 1581, father Campian was apprehended 
in a secret room in the house of a catholic gentleman. After 
remaining two days in the custody of the sheriff of Berkshire, 
he was conveyed by slow journies to London, on horseback ; 
his legs fastened unSer the horse, his arms tied behind him, 
and a paper placed on his hat, on which were written the words, 
" Campian the seditious Jesuit^'^ in large capital letters. On 
the 25th, he was delivered to the lieutenant of the Tower. He 
was frequently examined before the lord chancellor, or other 
members of the council, and by commissioners appointed by 
them. He was required to divulge what houses he had fre- 
quented; by whom he had been relieved •, whom he had recon- 
ciled,— when, which way, for what purpose, and by what com- 
mission he had come into tlie realm ; how, where, and by 
whom he printed his books. All these questions he declined 
to answer. In order, therefore, to extort answers from him, 
he was first laid on the rack, and his limbs stretched a little, 
to show him, as the executioners termed it, what the rack was. 
He persisted in his refusal ;— then, for several days successive- 
ly, the torture was increased ; and, on the two last occasions, 
he was so cruelly torn and rent, that he expected to expire un- 
der the torment. Whilst upon the rack, he called continually 

• See also " Doctor Bridgewater'e Concertatio," already noticed in 
the text, and *^ the Arraignment of Edmund Campian, Sherwin, Boq- 
^^ graye, Cottam, Bristow, Kimber, and others, for high treason, 24 Elizr 
" abeth ;^^ first published in the '* Phoenix Britannicus," and recently ii|. 
" Cobbet^s complete Collection of SUte Trials,'' vol. 1, p. 1050. See 
also " Strype's Annals," toI. 2, c. 3, 4. p. 645, 646. 

18 



206 FATHER CAMPIAN. [Letter 

upon God ; and prayed fervently for his tormentors, and for 
those by whose orders they acted. 

In your fifteenth letter, you mention, that, "in the reign of 
" Elizabeth, a public disputation was appointed, not, as in Ma- 
" ry's reign, by burning those who differed in opinion from the 
" ruling power, but with full liberty of speech, and perfect safe- 
"ty for the romish disputants." While father Campian was 
in prison, a disputation took place between him and some pro- 
testant divines, appointed for that purpose by government: the 
consequence to the dissentient from the ruling power, was the 
same as in queen Mary's reign, — within a few days after it 
took place, Campian was executed. 

On the 12th of November, he and his companions were in- 
dicted for high treason ; — the indictment stated, " that, in the 
" last March and April, at Rheims, in Champagne, Rome, and 
" Other parts beyond the seas, he had conspired the death of 
" her majesty, the overthrow of the religion professed in Eng- 
" land, the subversion of the state; and that, for the attempt 
" thereof, they had stirred up strangers to invade the realm; 
" moreover, that, on the 8th of the May following, they took 
" their journey from Rheims towards England, to persuade and 
" seduce the queen's subjects to the romish religion, and obe- 
" dience to the pope, from their duties and allegiance to her 
" highness ; and that, on the 1st of June, they amved in this 
" country for the same purposes." 

After the indictment was read, — '' I protest to God," said 
Campian, " and his angels, by heaven and earth, and before 
" this tribunal, — which I pray God may be a mirror of the 
^ judgment to come, — that I am not guilty of these treasons, 
" or any other. To prove these things against me is impossi- 
" ble." 



XV.] FATHER CAMPIAN. 207 

The prisoners were then arraigned, and severally pleaded 
not guilty. 

On the 20th of November, they were put to the bar for trial. 
Six were arraigned with Campian ; seven more arraigned on 
the folio vv^ing day: all, except one, were priests. When, ac- 
cording to custom, Campian was required to hold up his hand, — 
" both his arms," writes a person present at his trial, " being 
" pitifully benumbed by his often cruel rackings before, and 
" having them wrapped in a fur cuff, he was not able to lift up 
" his hand so high as the rest did, and was required of him ; 
" but one of his companions kissing his hands, so abused for 
*' the confession of Christ, took off his cuff, and so lifted up 
" his arm as high as he could, and he pleaded ' not guilty,' as 
" the rest did." 

The first witness produced by the crown, named Caddy or 
Craddock, deposed generally against all the prisoners, that, 
" being beyond the seas, he had heard of the holy vow, made 
^^ between the pope and the English priests, for restoring and 
" establishing religion in England ; for which purpose two 
" hundred priests should come into the realm. The which 
" matter was declared to sir Ralph Shelly, an English knight, 
" and captain to the pope ; and that he would conduct an army 
" into England, for subduing the realm unto the pope, and the 
^' destroying of the heretics. Whereto sir Ralph made answer, 
" that he would rather drink poison with Themistocles, than 
" see the overthrow of his country; and added, that he thought 
" the catholics in England would first stand in arms against the 
" pope, before they would join in such an enterprise." 

You must be amazed that such evidence could have been 
offered : evidence, in which nothing could be brought home 
to the prisoners; and which, if it did prove any thing, proved 



208 FATHER CAMPIAN. [Letter 

only the good disposition of the general body of the catholics 
to the government. 

The two next facts were the allegations of the queen's coun- 
cil, that Campian had conversed with the cardinal of Sicily and 
the bishop of Ross upon the bull of Pius V. The particulars 
of these conversations were not mentioned, nor was the 
slightest evidence produced to show that they had taken 
place. 

The next fact charged on Campian was, that he travelled 
from Prague to Rome, and held a private conference with doc- 
tor Allen, to withdraw the people from their allegiance. No 
proof of either of these facts were offered : but Campian can- 
didly admitted his journey, a conversation with doctor Allen, 
and his mission into this country ; but observed that the sole 
object of it was to administer spiritual aid to the catholics ; and 
that cardinal Allen had strictly charged, nay, commanded him, 
not to meddle with matters of state or government. 

A letter written by Campian was then produced, in which be 
grieved for having mentioned on the rack the names of some 
roman-catholic gentlemen, by whom he had been entertained; 
but comforted himself with the reflection, that he had never dis- 
covered any secrets therein declared. Campian replied, ''that 
^ every priest was bound by vow, under danger of perpetual 
'' curse and damnation, never to disclose any offence or inlir- 
'' mity revealed to him in confession." That, " in conse- 
" quence of his priesthood, he was accustomed to be privy to 
" divers men's secrets, — not such as concerned the state or 
" commonwealth, — but such as charged the grieved soul and 
" conscience, whereof he had power of absolution." 

The clerk then produced certain oaths, to be ministered to 
the people, for renouncing obedience to her majesty, and swear- 
ing allegiance to the pope ; which papers were said to have 



XV.] FATHER CMTPIAN. 209 

been found in the house, in which Campian had lurked. It 
does not however appear that any evidence was offered, either 
respecting the discovery of these papers, or the places in which 
they were said to have been found. Campian observed, that 
there was no proof that he had any concern in those papers ; that 
many other persons besides himself, had frequented the houses 
in which he was said to have lurked : so that there was nothing 
which brought the charge home to himself. As to administer- 
ing an oath of any kind, he declared, that " he would not com- 
" mit an offence so opposite to his profession, for all the sub- 
" stance and treasure in the world." 

Finally came the searching charge. " You refuse," said 
the counsel for the crown, " to swear to the oath of suprema- 
" cy." — " I acknowledge," answered Campian, " her highness 
" as my governess and sovereign ; I acknowledge, before the 
" commissioners, her majesty, both de facto et de jure^ to be 
" my queen \ I confess an obedience due to the crown, as my 
" temporal head and primate : — this I said then, this I say now. 
'^ As for excommunicating her majesty, — it was exacted of me, 
" — admitting that excommunicating were of effect, and that 
" the pope had sufficient power so to do, whether then I thought 
" myself discharged of my allegiance, or not ? I said this was 
" a dangerous question ; and they, who demanded this, de- 
^ manded my blood: but I never admitted any such matter; 
" neither ought I to be wrested with any such suppositions. 
" Well! since once more it need be answered, — I say, gener- 
" ally, that these matters are merely spiritual points of doc- 
" trine, and disputable in schools; no part of mine indictment, 
" nor given in evidence, and unfit to be discussed in the king's 
" bench. To conclude : they are no matters of fact ; they be 
" not in the trial of the country : the jury ought not to take 
" any notice of them." 
18* 



210 FATHER CAMPIAN. [Letter 

The judge then proceeded to the other prisoners: the evi- 
dence produced against them was of the same nature with that 
which was urged against Campian. The jury retired, and, af- 
ter deliberating an hour, found them all guilty. 

On the first of the following December, Campian was led to 
execution. He was dragged to it on a hurdle ; his face was 
often covered with mud, and the people good-naturedly wiped 
it off. He ascended the scaffold ; — there, he again denied all 
the treasons of which he had been accused. He was required 
'•to ask forgiveness of the queen:" he meekly answered, 
" wherein have I offended her ? In this I am innocent ; this 
" is my last breath ; in this give me credit, — I have, and I do 
" pray for her." Lord Charles Howard asked him, " for which 
" queen he prayed, — whether for Elizabeth the queen." Cam- 
pian replied, " Yes, for Elizabeth, your queen and my queen." 
He then took his last leave of the spectators, and, turning his 
eyes towards heaven, the cart was drawn away. " His mild 
" death, and sincere protestations of innocence," says the wri- 
ter from whence this account is taken, " moved the people 
" to such compassion and tears, that the adversaries of the 
" catholics were glad to excuse his death." HoUingshed says, 
" Campian had won a marvellous good report, to be such a man 
'' as his like was not to be found, for life, learning, or any 
" other quality that might beautify a man." — " All parties," 
says Mr. Chalmers, in his Biographical Dictionary, " allow him 
" to have been a most extraordinary man; of admirable parts, 
'' an eloquent orator, a subtile disputant, an exact preacher, both 
'' in Latin and English, and a man of good temper and address." 

" Certain it is," you say, " that Campian and his compan- 
'' ions suffered for points of state, and not of faith." I entreat 
you to peruse their trials ; you will find them in the first vol- 
ume of the State Trials. I call upon you to mention a single 



XV.] JESUITS MISREPRESENTED. 211 

instance of a crime against allegiance to the queen, which was 
proved against them. 

You insert a frightful account of the Jesuits. — Few persons, 
I believe, have considered the accusations brought against that 
society, or their vindications, with more attention, or greater 
impartiality, than myself. The result I have given to the pub- 
lic, in my " Historical Memoirs of the English, Irish, and 
" Scottish Catholics,"* and in a separate publication.'!* These 
I have more than once re-considered, and I have found nothing 
said in them, in the defence or praise of the society, that I ought 
to recall. You conclude what you say respecting them, by in- 
forming us, that " the fourth and peculiar vow of the Jesuits 
" placed them, as missionaries, at the absolute disposal of the 
" Old Man of the Mountain," — alluding to the celebrated, and 
perhaps fabulous Prince of the Assassins, mentioned by some 
of the historians of the crusades. " The popes," you proceed 
to say, " richly deserved this tide of 'the Man of the Mountain,' 
" for the principle of assassination was sanctioned by the 
" two most powerful of the catholic kings, and by the head of 
" the catholic church. It was acted upon in France and in Hoi- 
" land ; rewards were publicly offered for the murder of the 
" prince of Orange ; and the fanatics, who undertook to mur- 
'' der Elizabeth, were encouraged by a plenary remission of 
" sins, granted for this special service." 

Here, you first allude, I suppose, to the massacre on St. 
Bartholomew's day, ordered by Charles IX. But how can this 
massacre, or the murder of the prince of Orange, to which you 
afterwards refer, be justly imputed to any principle of the ro- 
man-catholic faith ? The plea of Charles IX. was, that the ad- 
miral de Coligni and his association had been guilty of U-eason 

* Chapter xxvi . 

t Historical xMemoirs of the Society of Jesus, 8 vo. 1 82S. 



212 ASSASSINATION ABHORRED. [Letter 

and rebellion, and were then actually engaged in treasonable 
and rebellious practices ; that, by these, they deserved death as 
traitors ; that they would have been condemned to suffer capi- 
tally, if the king had been powerful enough to bring them be- 
fore a proper tribunal ; and that, as this was not in his power, 
the circumstances of the case justified his putting them to 
death without a trial, by making it a necessary, and, therefore, 
a justifiable act of self-defence. 

In this light he represented his conduct to the see of Rome, 
and the foreign courts. 1 reject the plea as much as yourself; 
but it is surprising that, in the state of ferment and exaltation 
in which all minds then were, the plea should have been re- 
ceived by several ? Still, — -how does this prove the principle of 
assassination to be a tenet of the roman-catholic church } In 
my last chapter I shall mention the order given by the episco- 
palian government of Scotland, for the general massacre of the 
non-conforming presbyterians. Does this, — does the massa- 
cre at Glenco, the massacre at Munster, the assassination of 
cardinal Beaton, or the assassination of archbishop Sharp, or 
the assassination of Francis duke of Guise, prove the principle 
of assassination to be a tenet of the protestant faith } Far from 
me and mine be the weakness that receives such an argument; 
or the wickedness, that, rejecting it themselves, would wish to 
have it accredited by others. You remember the magnanimous 
speech of the duke of Guise to his huguenot assassin : " Your 
" religion taught you to murder me; mine teaches me to par- 
" don you." 

With respect to the murder of the prince of Orange : — that 
has nothing in common with assassination in the ordinary ac- 
ceptation of that word. The prince has been tried as a rebel, 
and condemned for contumacy. If he had professed the ca- 
tholic religion, and conducted himself in the manner he had 



XV.] CAMPIAN'S LETTER, &c. 213 

done towards a protestant sovereign, would not this have been 
the case in every protestant state ? The consequence was, that 
an order, (very usual in such cases, in the states on the Con- 
tinent,) was issued, through all the Spanish dominions, offer- 
ing a reward to any one who should execute the sentence. 
What has this, I again ask, in common with the principle of 
assassination ? 

You say, that " the fanatics, who undertook to murder Eliza- 
" beth, were encouraged by a plenary remission of sins, grant- 
" ed for this special service." I deny the fact explicitly ; I call 
upon you to mention the names of those fanatics, or the name 
of any of them, and to produce evidence of the grant of the re- 
mission of their sins. If you have in view cardinal Como's 
letter to Parry, read it and his trial ; then tell me candidly, 
whether you think that Parry produced the slightest evidence 
from which it could be reasonably inferred, that either the pope 
or the cardinal was aware of any project of assassinating Eliza- 
beth ? I beg leave to refer you to what I have written on this 
subject, in the " Historical Memoirs of the Endish, Irish and 
" Scottish Catholics."* 

In further proof of your charge of assassination, you inform 
us, that " Father Campian, in an oration delivered at Douay, 
" said : As far as concerns the Jesuits, we all,— dispersed in 
" great numbers throughout the world, — have made a league 
" and holy oath, that, as long as any of us are alive, all our 
" care and industry, all our deliberations and councils, shall ne- 
" ver cease to trouble your calm and safety." Permit me to 
observe to you, that the document to which you refer, is not 
an oration delivered at Douay, but, as it is justly styled by 
Strype, " Campian's letter to the privy council, offering to avow 
" and prove his catholic religion before all the doctors and mas- 

* Chapter xxxii. sect. 5. 



214 PERSECUTIONS [Letter 

" ters of both universities, and requiring a disputation." This 
circumstance alone makes some difference; — but it is more 
important, that the words, " to trouble your calm and safety," 
are an absolute interpolation. They do not occur in Strype,* 
or in doctor Bridge water's version of the letter : "^ Omnes nos 
" qui sumus de Societate Jesu per totum terrarum orient^ longe 
" Jateque diffusi^ sanctum fcedus inesse^ ut curas quam nobis 
" injecistis^ magno animo feramus^ neque unquam de vestrd sa- 
" lute desperemus^ quamdiu vel unus quisquam de nobis super- 
" est^ qui Tyburno vestro fruatur^ atque suppliciis vestris ex- 
" carnijicari^ carceribusque squalere et consumi possit^lf 



XV. 4. 

Justification of the Persecutions^ on the ground of the trai- 
torous Principles of the Foreign Seminarists^ and the gen- 
eral Disloyalty of the Roman-catholics, 

From the beginning of the reign of queen Elizabeth, until 
even the thirty-first year of the reign of his late majesty, no 
school, for the education of catholic youth in catholic princi- 
ples, could be supported, without exposing both the masters and 
the scholars to the very heavy penalties of forfeiture of goods 
and chattels, with one year's imprisonment, for the first offence ; 
to the penalties of a premunire for the second ; and to death 
for the third. This made it absolutely necessary to establish 
foreign seminaries for educating persons for the sacred minis- 
try. 

* Strype's Annals, iii. App. 6. 

t " Epistola Edmundi Campioni, sacerdotis Societatis Jesu, ad Regi- 
" n» Angliae Consiliarios, quae profectiones suae in Angliam, institutum 
" declarat, et adversaries in certamen provocat, ex Anglico sermone La- 
" tine tradita.'' Bridgewater's Concertatio, p 1, 2. 



XV.] BY ELIZABETH. 215 

You consider them as seminaries of disloyalty. Mr. Hume 
avers, in still stronger language, that " sedition, rebellion, some- 
^ times assassination, were the expedients by which the semi- 
'' narists intended to effect their purpose against their queen." 
To these atrocious charges, seven unquestionable facts may be 
opposed: — 1. that, of two hundred catholics who suffered for 
their religion in the reign of queen Elizabeth, one only impugn- 
ed her title to the crown : 2. that they all to the instant of their 
deaths, persisted in the most solemn and explicit denial of ev- 
ery legal guilt, except the mere exercise of their functions : 
8. that their accusers were uniformly persons of bad lives, and 
of the lowest character: 4. that there is not one instance, in 
which the tortures inflicted on them produced, either a confes- 
sion of his own guilt, or a charge of guilt on others : 5. that 
the barbarous irregularity with which their trials were conduct- 
ed has seldom been equalled: 6. that even this irregularit)^ ne- 
ver furnished legal evidence of their commission of any legal 
treason, except, as we have already noticed, a mere exercise of 
missionary functions : 7. and that even this was seldom prov- 
ed upon them by competent evidence. The perusal of their 
trials will convince you of the truth of these assertions. 

To what we have said, we should add the most solemn as- 
severations of doctor Allen, in his '' True and modest De- 
" fence of the English Catholics against a libel, entitled, the 
" Execution of Justice in England, — that all conversations on 
" subjects of state or policy, were strictly prohibited to the stu- 
" dents in the foreign seminaries, and that they were enjoined 
" to abstain from them, and from all interference in secular con- 
" cerns, when they should be employed in the English mis- 
" sion." 

I now request your candid opinion, whether you think there 



216 PERSECUTIONS [Letter 

is any ground for your charge of disloyalty against the semi- 
narists ? 

Permit me to add, that this completely repels your accusa- 
tion, that the priests were executed for treason. That expres- 
sion conveys an idea, that the treason upon which the mission- 
aries suffered, was some act made treasonable by the antient 
law of the land, or by the statute of 25 of Edward III. com- 
monly called " the Statute of Treasons." Your readers cer- 
tainly understand your expression in this sense ; but not one 
of the missionary priests suffered for any act of this description. 
The only acts for which they sufferod were those, which the 
statutes . of Elizabeth had made treasonable, — as, denying her 
spiritual authority, remaining in or returning to England, or 
some other spiritual observance. Now, if the priests had not 
remained in or returned to England, the English roman-catho- 
lies would have been without instruction, without the sacra- 
ments, and without the rites of their church. To remain in, 
or return to England was, therefore, the duty of the catholic 
priesthood ; and for some act of this religious duty, — but for 
no act of any other kind,— were they executed. Thus, if you 
say they were hanged and embo welled, not for being priests^ 
but for being traitors, then, as their being priests was the sole 
cause of their being traitors, they were, in truth, hanged and 
embowelled for being priests.* 

♦This is sir Walter Scott's judicious observation, in his edition of Dry* 
den's works, vol. 3, p. 237, note xt. 

The justice of the execution of the priests, on the ground suggested in 
the text, was asserted by lord Burghley in a state paper, published by him 
in 1583, entitled, " The Execution of justice," inserted in the Harleian 
Collection. To this, cardinal Allen triumphantly replied, by his " True, 
" sincere and modest Defence of Christian Catholics.'' The cardinal's 
publication was universally read and admired. The style is admirable ; 
the learned Edmund Bolton called it, *^ A princely, grave and flourishing 
'< piece of natural and exquisite English. " 



XV.] BY ELIZABETH. 217 



XV, 5, 

Justification of the Persecution of the Roman-catholics in the 
Reign of Queen Elizabeth^ on the ground of the persecuting 
Principles and Practices of tJieir ChurcL 

On this subject you write with great strength and eloquence, 
but without citing any authority. This defect I will supply, 
by confessing that the roman-catholics have sometimes been 
guilty of the crime, (for such 1 deem it,) of religious persecu- 
tion. But did not justice and candour require of you to ad- 
mit the equal guilt, in this respect, of protestants ? Have not 
the protestants persecuted the roman-catholics, and even their 
fellow protestants, in every country in which they have ob- 
tained the ascendancy, as in Germany, Switzerland, Geneva, 
France, Holland, Sweden, Scotland and England ? You men- 
tion the sanguinary executions of protestants in the Low-Coun- 
tries, by the order of the merciless duke of Alva ; these I re- 
probate as much as yourself: but why are you silent on the 
executions, equally, and I believe, more sanguinary, of the ro- 
man-catholics by the order of Vandermerck and Sonoi in Bel- 
gium and Holland ? or on the persecuting deeds and writings 
of Calvin, Beza and other reformers ? You mention the massa- 
cre on St. Bartholomew's day :— It is not to be justified, and 
not much to be extenuated ; but I agree with doctor Lingard, 
that it was not, as it has been generally represented, a work of 
long premeditation. It certainly had been preceded by the 
massacres perpetrated in France by the calvinists upon the ca- 
tholics, and their repeated burnings of churches and monaste- 

19 



218 PERSECUTIONS [Letter 

ries. Doctor Heylin* mentions the calvinistic massacres of 
the catholic priests at Pamiers, Montauban, Rodez and other 
places. Why did you not mention these ? Why were you si- 
lent on the cruelties exercised by the protestant episcopalians 
on the Scottish presbyterians, throughout the reign of Charles 
II., notwithstanding his solemn promise of toleration at Bre- 
da ? Can you read without horror Mr. Laing's account of 
them? Or can you read without compunction the sufferings 
of the English protestant non-conformists in the same reign ? 
In the preface to De Laune's " Plea for Non-conformists," it 
is said that 8,000 of them perished in this persecution. Per- 
haps, when you read Mr. Laing's account^ of " the treachery, 
'' and almost unexampled perjuries of the first ministers of the 
" church and state of Scotland," — and of" the absolute and un- 
" distinguished massacre voted by the privy council," and " of 
'^ the warrant for it signed by the king," and " of the execution 
" of it, — not inferior to the spirit by which it was dictated," — 
you may think that the catholic massacre on St. Bartholo- 
mew's day has been equalled by more than one protestant 
enormity. 

I beg leave to ask you, whether you think it consistent with 
historic impartiality, to keep out of sight the outrages com- 
mitted by protestants, while you bring forward, in the most 
glowing language, those committed by the roman-catholics ? 
Read doctor Milner's " fourth letter to doctor Sturges," his 
forty-ninth letter in his " End of Controversy," his " twenty- 
" second letter to Mr. Grier," and the excellent letter in the 
" Edinburgh Review," on the toleration of the first reformers ; 
then let me adjure you, as a christian and a gentleman, to say 
on which side the balance of religious persecution lies, — the ca- 

•Vol. 27, p. 163. 

t Laingr, vol. ?y p. 83. 151. --and through the whole of book yii. & viii. 
of bis hiatorj. 



XV.] BY ELIZABETH. 219 

tholic or the protestant ? Or what better reason there is to 
ascribe catholic persecutions to the catholic religion, than to 
ascribe protestant persecutions to the protestant? — Pardon me 
the solemnity of this address : it is known that nothing tends 
to prejudice the public mind in this country against the ro- 
man-catholics, so much as making it believed that the lawful- 
ness, and even the duty of religious persecution, is one of the 
tenets of their creed. To this accusation, all who wish us evil 
never fail to resort. That you, a man of real learning, should 
attack us with such a weapon, gives me surprise and sorrow. 

But, Sir, — for the subject is so serious that I cannot yet quit 
it, — if you are not convinced that you share the guilt of reli- 
gious persecution, at least equally with us, turn your eyes 
westward, and contemplate Ireland ! ! ! 

There, — you will see a people to whom Nature has been 
profusely kind. She has blessed them with the most genial 
climate, the most fertile soil, the boldest coasts, the most navi- 
gable rivers ; with strength, industry, energy, virtue and talent ! 
With all these blessings, they have, for three hundred years, 
been the most miserable nation in the habitable globe ] and 
present, at this moment, a scene of appalling wretchedness ; — 
a wretchedness so bitter, so deep, and so extensive, that 
even the enemies of their name shudder at beholding it; 
but, at the same time, a wretchedness formed by the original 
artificers of it with such fiendish skill and contrivance, that it 
seems almost beyond human ability to remove it. To what is 
this owing ? Let lord chancellor Clare answer in his own 
words, — "The division of Ireland," says his lordship, " be- 
'' tween those who adhered to the catholic, and those who ad- 
" hered to the protestant religion, is the grand schism^ which 
" has been the bane and pestilence of Ireland^ and rendered 
^ her a blank among the nations of Europe?^ 



2W PERSECUTIONS, &c. [Letter 

Mentioning^ the persecutions of queen Elizabeth, you assert, 
that '' no church, no sect, no individual even, had yet profess- 
" ed the principle of toleration." Now it had been repeatedly 
professed by writers of the roman-catholic church : Sir Tho- 
mas More had established it in Utopia; the fourth council of 
Toledo had declared, that '^ it was unlawful and unchristian- 
" like to force people to believe, seeing it is God alone who 
*' hardens and shows mercy t*o whom he wilL" — ^''Neither 
" saint Ambrose, nor saint Martin," says Mr. Alban Butler, in 
his lives of those great men, " would communicate with Itha- 
" cius, or those bishops who held communion with him, be- 
" cause they sought to put heretics to death. — Saint Martira 
" besought Maximus not to spill the blood of the guilty ; sayings 
" it was sufficient that they had been declared heretics, and ex- 
" communicated by the bishops ; and that there was no prece- 
" dent of an ecclesiastical cause being brought before the se- 
^ cular judge." 

In all these instances, was not the true principle of religious 
toleration professed I Were not those, who thus professed it^ 
roman-catholics ? 

The doctrine of religious toleration is now so generally ad- 
mitted, at least in theory, that it surprises me to find a person, 
who openly professes the doctrine of religious intolorance- 
Yet such persons are sometimes met with. Bishop Sparkej 
addressing himself to the synod of Canterbury, in July 1807, 
denounced " the roman-catholics," — who form at least one 
fourth of the population of the empire, — ^''as enemies of all 
^•^ laws, divine and human, and who, as such, should be driven 
^'fram our courts and armies P YoUj in the chapter now be- 
fore me, eulogize the celebrated John Fox ; you call him "^ the 
good old mai'tyrologist;" you mention him as the only person 
who raised his voice against queen Elizabeth's persecution of 



XV.] ALLEGED PLOTS, &c, 2-21 

the anabaptists. But, what was the persecution against which 
he raised his voice ? "There is," (I transcribe your own ci- 
tation of his words,) " There is," he says, " imprisonment, 
" there are chains, there are brandings and stripes, and even 
" the gibbet : this alone I earnestly deprecate, that you would 
" not suffer the fires of Smithfield, which, under happy auspi- 
" ces, have slept so long, should be again rekindled." — Surely, 
" the good old martyrologist," as you call him, did not raise, in 
favour of toleration, his voice very high. 

His " Acts and Monuments" have, from the time of their 
publication, been the great armory of the weapons wielded 
against the roman-catholics, to bring them and their religion 
into odium. . An excellent answer to them was published by 
father Persons. Another is now publishing in numbers, by 
Mr. William Eusebius Andrews; it shoves great learning, and 
great power of argument. It seems to be admitted, that doctor 
Milner triumphed in controversy with doctor Sturges; I am 
confident Mr. Andrews's triumph over " the good old martyr- 
" ologist" will be equally complete. 



XV. 6. 

Justification of the Persecution ^J the Roman-catholics^ in 
the Reign of Queen Elizo^eth^ from the alleged Plots 
against her. 

As a further excuse for the sanguinary acts of queen Eliza- 
beth against the roman-catholics, you mention their alleged 
plots against her. I have discussed this charge in " the His- 
" torical Memoirs of the English, Irish and Scottish Roman- 
" catholics :" I trust that I have satisfactorily shown, that there 

is not one which can, with any justice, be charged upon the 
19* 



222 THE ARMADA, [Letter 

catholics. But, if all that is said of their supposed guilt were 
completely true, how very small a proportion of their body 
would it criminate. Would it be just to implicate the univer- 
sal body of the roman-catholics, consisting, at that time, of one 
half, probably of two-thirds of the whole population of Eng- 
land, in the crime of twenty or thirty at the utmost of their 
members ? Would it be allowable to attribute it to their reli- 
gious principles ? to assign any other excuse for it than the or- 
dinary feelkigs and passions of human nature ? 

You produce against us the bull of Pius V. by which he af- 
fected to depose queen Elizabeth, and to absolve her subjects 
of their allegiance to her ; and the renewal of it by Sixtus 
Quintus. You cannot express yourself of these transactions in 
stronger terms of condemnation, than I have used in "the 
" Historical Memoirs." With the late reverend Charles Plow- 
den,* 1 have acknowledged that a few, — but only very few, — 
catholics, chiefly from among those who lived in exile, — were 
led astray by these illaudable bulls from their duty. I have al- 
so acknowledged, that the conduct of the popes, and these ad- 
herents to them, would have justified queen Elizabeth in the 
use of strong precautions. This is all the acknowledgment 
the case requires or justifies ; and grieving, as I do, that there 
is cause for it, I make it without hesitation. 



XV. 7. 

The Spaiiis/i JLnnada, 

But, — was it kind or just in you^ to be perfectly silent on the 
conduct of the roman-cathoiics during the threatened invasion 

* Reply to the Editor of the Memoirs of Panzani. 



XV.] THE ARMADA. 223 

by the Spanish Armada; a conduct which doies them so much 
honour? 

Warmly attached to their faith, which had twice rescued their 
country from paganism ; and under which, during a long se- 
ries of centuries, their ancestors had enjoyed every spiritual 
and temporal blessing; they now beheld it proscribed; its te- 
nets reviled, its sacred institutions abolished, its holy edifices 
levelled with the ground, its altars profaned ; all who professed 
it groaning under the severest inflictions of religious persecu- 
tion ; imaginary plots incessantly imputed to them ; the sub- 
tilest artifices used to draw them into criminal attempts ; 
" counterfeit letters privately left in their houses ; spies sent 
" up and down the country to notice their discourses, and lay 
" hold of their words ; informers and reporters of idle stories 
" against them countenanced and credited ;"* and even " inno- 
" cence itself," (to use Camden's own words,) " though ac- 
" companied by prudence, no guard to them ;" they had con- 
stantly before their eyes the racks and gibbets by which their 
priests had suffered, and they saw other racks and other gib- 
bets preparing ; they saw the presumptive heir to the crown 
brought to the block, because she was of their religion ; and 
because, as she was formally told by lord Buckhurst, " the es- 
" tablished religion was thought not to be secure whilst she 
-" was in being ;" they knew the universal indignation which 
this enormity had raised in every part of Europe against their 
remorseless persecutor ; that plus V. the supreme head of their 
church, had excommunicated her, had deposed her, had absolv- 
ed her subjects from their allegiance to her, and implicated them 
in her excommunication if they continued true to her ; they 
knew that Sixtus, the reigning pope, had renewed the excom- 
munication, had called on every catholic prince to execute the 

* Carte's History, vol. 3, p. 585. 



224 THE ARMADA. [Letter 

sentence, and that Philip II. by far the most powerful monarch 
of the time, had undertaken it ; had lined the shores of the 
Continent with troops, ready, at a moment's notice, for the in- 
vasion of England; and had covered the sea with an armanent, 
which was proclaimed to be invincible ; — in this awful moment, 
when England stood in need of all her strength, and the slight- 
est diversion of any part of it might have proved fatal, — the 
worth of a . roman-catholic's conscientious loyalty was fully 
shown. What catholic in England did not do his duty ? Who 
of them forgot his allegiance to the queen ? or was not eager 
to sacrifice his life and his whole fortune in her cause? — 
" Some," says Hume, " equipped ships at their own charge, 
'' and gave the command of them to protestants ; others were 
" active in animating their tenants, and their vassals and neigh- 
"bours, in defence of their country." — "Some," (says the 
writer of an intercepted letter, printed in the second volume of 
the Harleian Miscellany,)* " by their letters to the council, 
" signed with their own hands, offered that they would make 
" adventures of their own lives in defence of the queen, whom 
" they named their undoubted sovereign lady and queen, against 
" all foreign foes, though they were sent from the pope, or at 
" his commandment ; yea, some did offer that they would pre- 
" sent their bodies in the foremost ranks:" Lord Montagu, 
a zealous catholic, and the only temporal peer who ventured to 
oppose the act for the queen's supremacy in the first year of 
her reign, brought a band of horsemen to Tilbury, commanded 
by himself, his son and his grandson, thus periling his whole 
house in the expected conflict :| — ^The annals of the world do 
not present a more glorious or a more affecting spectacle than 
the zeal shown on this memorable occasion, by the poor and 

*Page 64. 

t Osborn's Secret History, edit. 1811, p. 22. 



XV.] SUFFERINGS OF, &c. 225 

persecuted, but loyal, but honourable catholics ! — Nor should 
it be forgotten, that, in this account of their loyalty, all histo- 
rians are agreed. 

Then will not you, — even you, — ^feel some indignation when 
you are informed, — that this exemplary, may it not be called, 
heroic conduct, procured no relaxation of the laws against the 
catholics ? — that it was followed, almost immediately, by laws 
still more harsh than the preceding ? — That through the whole 
remainder of the reign of Elizabeth, the laws against the cath- 
olics continued to be executed with unabated, and even with 
increased rigour ? — That between the defeat of the armada, and 
the death of Elizabeth, more than one hundred catholics were 
hanged and embowelled, — merely, we must repeat, — for the 
exercise of their religion ? — and that, when some catholics pre- 
sented to the queen a most dutiful and loyal address, praying 
in the most humble terms, a mitigation of the laws against them, 
no other attention was shown it, than that Mr. Shelly, by whom 
it was presented to the queen, " for presuming," as it was said, 
" to present an address to the queen, without the knowledge 
" and consent of the lords of the council," was sent to the mar- 
shalsea, and kept a close prisoner till his death? 

Surely, when you peruse this treatment of the catholics, you 
will feel some indignation. But do you not justly excite some- 
thing of a like indignation, when, after seeing the loyalty of 
the catholics thus so severely tried, and thus found so emi- 
nently pure, you still continue in your prejudices, and still em- 
ploy your pen in maledictions of us and our ancestors ? 

One of these sufferers, — father Robert Southwell, of the so- 
ciety of Jesus, — will, I am sure, attract your attention ; for, 
like yourself, he knew 

" Mimself to sing and build the lofty rhyme.'' 

Milton. 



226 SUFFERINGS OF, &c. [Letter 

His poems were printed in 1585 ; a selection from this edi- 
tion has been lately published in a small octavo volume. Sir 
Egerton Bridges observes, in his Censura Literariuj that " a 
" deep moral pathos, illumined by fervent piety, marked every 
" thing Southwell wrote, either in prose or verse j" and that 
" there is something singularly simple, chaste, eloquent and flu- 
" ent in his diction on all occasions." 

An eloquent and interesting account of his life, virtues, suf- 
ferings, trial and execution, is given by father Juven§i.* It ap- 
pears by it, and by other accounts, that father Southwell was 
racked ten times ; and sometimes, during seven hours, without 
intermission. He was executed on the 21st February 1595: 
The hangman tied the noose of the rope so unskilfully, that 
father Southwell, while he was hanging, made the sign of the 
cross several times. While he was yet alive, the hangman ad- 
vanced to cut the rope, but the people withheld him three se- 
veral times by their cries ; for the meekness and constancy with 
which the good father comported himself, in his last moments, 
were so great, that even the protestants, who were present at 
the execution, were greatly afiected by the sight. 

A letter, written by him, gives an account of the suiTerings 
of the catholic priests in prison, which, I am sure, must shock 
the feelings of every humane reader. " A little while ago," 
says the reverend writer, " they apprehended two priests, who 
" have suffered such cruel usages in the prison of Bridewell 
'^ as can scarce be believed. What was given them to eat, was 
" so litde in quantity, and withal so filthy and nauseous, that 
'' the very sight of it was enough to turn their stomaclis. The 
'' labours, to which they obliged them, were continual and im- 

* Historia Societatis Jesu, lib. xiii. n. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. See Strype's 
Ann vol 4, n.lxxix. ; Holt's Lett. ib. 147 ; and Memoirs of Miss. Priests, 
vol. 1, p. 324. 



XV.] EXECUTIONS. 227 

" moderate, and no less in sickness than in health •, for, with 
" hard blows and stripes, they urged them to accomplish their 
" tasks, how weak soever they were. Some are there hung up 
" whole days by the hands, in such a manner that they can but 
" just touch the ground with the tips of their toes, in fine, they 
" that are kept in prison truly live in lacu miserice^ et in luto 
"fcEcis^ psalm 39. This purgatory we are looking for every 
" hour, in which Topcliffe and Young, the two executioners of 
" the catholics, exercise all kinds of torments. But come what 
" please God, we hope we shall be able to bear all in him that 
" strengthens us." 

This letter is dated the 16th January, 1590, seventeen 
months after the memorable display of catholic loyalty, while 
England was threatened by the invincible armada. 

In 1592, a poor waterman, and a Mrs. Ward, a widow, then 
in the service of a catholic lady, were hanged, drawn and quar- 
tered, for assisting a catholic priest to escape from prison. 
Mrs. Ward had been hung up by her hands, and cruelly 
scourged. In 1601, Mrs. Lyne suffered the same punishment 
for harbouring a priest. In 1586, Mrs. Clitheroe, of the an- 
tient family of Middleton, in Yorkshire, was tried by the order 
of the earl of Huntingdon, the lord president of the north, for 
relieving a priest. She refused to plead ; and, by the sentence 
of the court, was pressed to death. A note in doctor Lingard's 
history contains the following account of this severe sen- 
tence.* 

" The place of execution was the tolbooth, six or seven 
^ yards from the prison at York, on the 25th March, 1586. 
^ An eye-witness gives the following account of this cruel and 
" unparalleled scene. ' After she had prayed, Fawcet, one of 

♦Vol. 5, n. (FF.,) p. 667. Mem. of Miss. Priests, vol. 1, 189. 



228 EXECUTIONS. [Letter XV. 

" the sheriffs, commanded them to put off her apparel; when 
" she, with the four women, requested him on their knees, 
" that, for the honour of womanhood, this might be dispensed 
" with *, but they would not grant it. Then she requested that 
" the women might unapparel her, and that they would turn 
" their faces from her during that time. The women took off 
^} her cloaths, and put upon her the long linen habit. Then, 
" very quietly, she laid her down upon the ground, her face 
''covered with a handkerchief, and most part of her body with 
" the habit. The door was laid upon her; her hands she 
" joined towards her face. Then the sheriff said, ' Naie, ye 
" must have your hands bound.' Then two sergeants parted 
" her hands, and bound them to two posts, in the same man- 
" ner as the feet had previously been fixed. After this they 
" laid weight upon her, which, when she first felt, she said, 
" 'Jesu! Jesu! Jesu ! have mercy upon mee !' which were the 
" last words she was heard to speake. She was dying about 
'^ one quarter of a hower. A sharp stone, as big as a man's 
" fist, had been put under her back ; upon her was laid to the 
^' quantity of seven or eight hundred weight, which, breaking 
" her ribs, caused them to burst forth of the skin.' " 

Once more 1 take leave to ask you, — did not the duty of 
historic impartiality require of you to mention these suffer- 
ings, and this meritorious conduct of the roman-catholics ? 



JAMES I. n9 



LETTER XVI. 



JAMES I. 



Sir, 

T^HE part of your chapter on the reign of James I. which re- 
lates to the roman-catholics, is extremely limited : it is confin- 
ed to the Gunpowder Plot, and the Oath of Allegiance requir- 
ed by James from the roman-catholics ; both are important, and 
I shall successively consider them. 



XVI. 1, 

TTie Chinpowder Plot. 

Justice to the roman-catholics evidently required of you, 
to mention their many loyal advances to king James, on his 
accession to the English throne; the diitiful addresses to him, 
both from the roman-catholic clergy, and the roman-catholic 
laity ; and the humble supplication presented to him from the 
priests in exile. You should also have mentioned the commu- 
nications between him and the catholics, both in the life-time 
of Elizabeth, and subsequently to her decease; his fair words, 
and even promises to them, particularly during the negotiations 
30 



230 JAMES I. [Letter 

for the marriage of Charles, his son and successor, with the in- 
fanta of Spain ; his explicit avowals, after these negotiations 
ceased, of his resolution to persecute the roman-catholics ; and 
the declaration of Bancroft, the bishop of London, that the time 
was come, " when the protestants might act against the cath- 
" olics without dissimulation or mercy ; that is,— exterminate 
" them :" and the statute of the first year of his reign, which 
directed, that the laws against Jesuits and seminary priests 
should be put into execution ; that two-third parts of the real 
estates of every offender, should be seized for recusancy ; and 
that persons educated in foreign seminaries should be incapa- 
ble of taking lands by descent. Should you not have brought 
forward all these circumstances ? Observing, as you have done, 
a total silence upon them, can you yourself say, that you have 
fairly stated their case ? 

You cite James for saying, that " he was but half a king to 
" the papists, being lord of their bodies, while their souls were 
" the pope's." Why should the roman-catholics be incessant- 
ly insulted by a repetition of these taunting expressions ? what 
foundation is there for them ? When all the protestant colo- 
nies in America revolted against England, catholic Canada alone 
preserved her allegiance to her. What would be the solitude 
of her camps and her armies, if the brave and loyal catholics 
did not fill them ? Have not ministers, has not the legislature 
of Great Britain, repeatedly acknowledged the loyalty and 
worth of his majesty's roman-catholic subjects ? Did not the 
earl of Liverpool, in the debate on the Irish petition, say, — '^ I 
^ have heard allusions, this night, to doctrines which, I do hope, 
'^ no man now believes the roman-catholics to entertain ; nor 
" is there any ground, that the question is opposed upon any 
" such pretence." This is the language of a statesman, and a 
gentleman. — How much better, — better in every sense of the 
word, is it, — than general, ungrounded, and illiberal abuse! 



XVI.] JAMES I. 2S1 

You proceed to the gunpowder plot : — " That atrocious trea- 
" son," you say, " was devised by a few bigots, who had be- 
^ come furious, when their hopes of bringing about a Spanish 
" invasion were frustrated by the peace with Spain. The Eng- 
" lish catholics, as a body, were innocent of it ; but the oppro- 
" brium which it brought upon their church was not unjust ; 
" because Guy Fawkes and his associates acted upon the same 
" principles as the head of that church," on the occasions 
which you enumerate, and which we have already mentioned. 

But, — how many catholics were concerned in the plot } Six- 
teen at the most; and nine only of these were privy to the 
powder part of it. In what estimation were the conductors of 
the plot held by the catholics ? A contemporary writer * in- 
forms us, that " they were a few wicked and desperate wretches, 
" whom many protestants termed papists, although the priests 
^ and true catholics knew them not to be such : nor could any 
^ protestant say, that any one of them was such as the law 
^' terms popish recusants." Who revealed the conspiracy? 
Lord Mounteagle, a roman-catholic. — ^Who were particularly 
active in detecting and exposing it ? The earl of Northamp- 
ton and the earl of Suffolk, both roman-catholics. — If it had 
succeeded, and the explosion had taken place, would not many, 
and perhaps nearly as many, roman-catholics as protestants 
have perished in the ruin? As soon as the particulars of the 
plot became generally known, did not the catholics universally 
express their horror of it ? Blackwell, the catholic archpriest, 
and the other leading clergymen, immediately circulated a pas- 
toral letter, in which they called it " detestable and damnable ;" 
and assured the catholics, '' that the pope had always condemn- 
^ ed such unlawful practices." — ^They presented an address to 

•Protestants Plea for Priests, p. 58, published in 1621. 



2S2 GUNPOWDER PLOT. [Letter 

the king, another to both houses of parliament, and a third to 
Cecil, the chief secretary of state, declaring in each their abhor- 
rence of the plot, asserting their innocenc-e, and urging inqui- 
ry,'^ Soon after the archpriest and the leading clergy had 
published their letter, the former received a brief from the pope 
to the same effect; on the receipt of it, he, with the leading 
clergy, announced it to the catholics, by a letter, in the same 
spirit as the preceding. 

You say, that, '4f the conspirators felt any compunctious 
^ scruples, the sanction of their ghostly fathers quieted their 
^ doubts." To this, permit me to give an absolute denial. 
So far was it from being the case, that the histories published 
by More and Bartoli show, that the Jesuits exerted themselves 
to sooth the general irritation, which James's conduct had nat- 
urally occasioned. This was known so generally, that some 
ardent spirits insinuated, that the Jesuits were leagued with gov- 
ernment, to withhold the catholics from asserting their rights. 

The rack, as usual, was resorted to. — ^John Owen, a servant, 
was put to the torture, when he was labouring under a rupture : 
his bowels burst; he was then removed, taken to bed, and died 
soon afterwards. — Father Gerard, a Jesuit, without the slightest 
evidence of his guilt, was sent to the tower; his hands were 
screwed into two iron rings, and hj those he was fastened to a 
column, at a height that did not allow his feet to touch the 
ground: He was kept in this excruciating torture during 
one hour; a block was then placed under his feet, and he 
remained in that state during five more hours ; he was then 
removed. On the next day the same torture was inflicted upon 
him, and he fainted from excess of pain : He was recalled to 
sense by pouring vinegar down his throat, but the torture was 
continued : On the following day he was ordered to it for the 

* The Advocate of Conseienc© and Liberty, &c. p. 2S0. 



XVL] GUNPOWDER PLOT. * 233 

third time, but the governor of the Tower interfered, and pre- 
vented it : He was never brought to trial, and, after some time, 
escaped from prison. After he had reached the Continent, he 
in tlie most solemn manner, protested his absolute innocence 
of the charge. — Father Oldcorne, another Jesuit, was racked 
five times, and upon one occasion, with particular severity, dur- 
ing several hours : Not even the slightest evidence was pro- 
duced of his having been concerned in the plot, or of his hav- 
ing been acquainted with any circumstances connected with it ; 
he was, however, tried for misprison of treason, found guilty, 
hanged, cut down alive, and embo welled. — Guy Fawkes was 
put to the torture : By a document in the state-paper office, king 
James gave particular directions for the managiement of his tor- 
ture ; he desired that it might proceed from less to greater se- 
verity, — per gradus ad ima^ — His majesty's own expression. 

In respect to father Garnet's complicated and melancholy 
tale, a full account of it is necessary to make it understood ; I 
must, therefore, beg leave to refer you for it, to " the Histori- 
" cal Memoirs of the English, Irish and Scottish Catholics."* 

But I beg leave to add, that Mr. Peel having granted me, in 
the most liberal manner, permission to examine the documents 
respecting the gunpowder conspiracy, in the state-paper office, 
1 have availed myself of it at different times. The result of 
my researches has been favourable to the catholic cause, Ihave 
communicated it to doctor Lingard, and I therefore wait with 
great impatience, for the next volume of his elegant, accurate, 
and impartial work. I must use this opportunity to thank Mr. 
Peel, for the free access which he gave me to the state-paper of- 
fice. A roman-catholic may be permitted to wish, that his op- 
sition to catholic emancipation was much less able ; but he can- 
not wish it more honourable, or more liberal, 

• Chap, xMr. xIt. xlvi. 
20* 



234 OATH OF ALLEGIANCE. Letter 

Whatever were the circumstances of the plot, the penal laws 
against the catholics were carried into execution with great 
severity. Eighteen priests, and seven laymen, suffered death 
for the mere exercise of their religion ; one hundred and twen- 
ty-sixpriests were banished, and the heavy fine of twenty pounds 
was exacted, with the greatest rigour, from every catholic^ 
who did not attend the service of the established church. 



XVI. V,, 

TJie Oath of Allegiance required ly James L from the 
English Roman-catholics. 

You mention the beatification of father Garnet ; — then in- 
form us, that "the parliament thought it necessary that an 
" oath of allegiance should be taken from every catholic ;" — 
that the pope forbade them to take it, as being " injurious to 
" his authority, and destructive to their own souls;" that "it 
" was however taken without apparent scruple or reluct- 
" ance : but that catholic writers of the first eminence abroad 
" maintained the papal pretensions in their whole extent;" 
and that " the protestants were thus confirmed in their opi- 
" nion, that the doctrine of equivocation, which was publicly 
" taught by the roman-casuists, and the belief of the pope's 
" absolute power, rendered it impossible to confide in the 
" oaths of men, whose conscience was not in their own keep- 
" ing." Permit me to say, that this representation cantains 
many mistakes. 

Father Garnet has not been beatified. Of this, catholic wii- 
t«rs have more than once explicitly assured the public in 
works of celebrity, and in considerable circulation. Perhaps 



XVI.] FATHER GARNET. 335 

you are not aware of what constitutes a beatification : When 
the canonization of any holy person is solicited, a commission 
is issued by the Congregation of Rites, for the purpose of as- 
certaining the general opinion of his sanctity and miracles. If 
the report of the commissioners be favorable to them, the pro- 
cess Tor the canonization is instituted : it proceeds through va- 
rious stages, until it is ascertained, by the most solemn atid 
strict proofs, that the party possessed the virtues of faith, hope 
and charity, in an eminent, or, — to use the language of the pro- 
ceeding, — in an heroic degree ; and that miracles were worked 
by him, or through his* intercession. This proof being obtain- 
ed, a consistory of cardinals is convened ; a very solemn de- 
liberation ensues ; and if the consistory is of opinion that the 
proof required is satisfactory, the cause proceeds ; and then, but 
not until then, the pope pronounces the party to be " among 
" the blessed." This is termed "beatification." Here the 
process frequently stops. — A further process, in which proof of 
other miracles is required, leads it to canonization. When he 
is beatified, he is terrned " blessed ;" when he is canonized, he 
is termed " sanctified," or " saint." Now, no process for the 
canonization of father Garnet has ever been begun ; he has 
not therefore been beatified : it is even irregular to call him 
^ blessed." If any roman-catholic writer has applied that epi- 
thet to him, (which I think doubtful,) he unquestionably in- 
tended to use the word in its ordinary, not in its appropriate 
sense. 

As to the oath of allegiance : — Some Transalpine divines 
carried their opinions in favour of the papal power so high, as 
to madntain that the pope possessed, by divine right, and di- 
rectly, supreme power, both in temporal and spiritual con- 
cerns : others lowered this pretension considerably, by maiiv- 



236 JAMES I. [Letter 

taining that the popfe, by divine right, possessed directly no 
temporal power ; but that, when the great good of any state, 
or any individual required it, he might exercise temporal pow- 
er, or cause it to be exercised over that state or individual. 
This gave him, indirectly^ temporal power in spiritual con- 
cerns. The latter was a general opinion of roman-catholics 
when James proposed his oath of allegiance ; it is now aban- 
doned in^every part of the world, except the precinct within 
the walls of the Vatican : the Englisli, Irish and Scottish ro- 
man-catholics have solemnly disclaimed it by their oaths. 

The persons who took the oath prescribed by James I. dis- 
claimed the pope's deposing power absolutely, and without any 
qualification ; and abjured, "as impious and heretical, the dam- 
" nable doctrine, that princes excommunicated, or deprived by 
" the pope, might be deposed or murdered by their subjects, or 
" any other whatsoever." The pope, by two briefs, forbade 
the catholics to take the oath ; and there is no doubt, although 
he did not venture to avow it, that it was on account of its dis- 
claimer of his deposing power. — I wish that I could say with 
you, that " it was taken by the catholics without apparent 
"scruple or reluctance:" — It occasioned much contention and 
heart-burning among them, and a fierce and long war of words 
ensued : ultimately, the oath was taken by the generality of 
the body, but it always had opponents. Nothing, however, in 
the dispute, warrants your charge of equivocation. Never did 
equivocation enter less into any conflict ; nothing can be more 
explicit than Bellannine's attack, or Widdrington's defence, of 
the oath. The Clarendon state papers* contain a multitude of 
documents, which show the fairness of the proceedings on 
each side. I believe that the views of James himself, in propos- 

• Vol. I, p. 1 90. And see the Historical Memoirs, c. xlvii. xlviii. 1?!. 



XVI.] OATH OF ALLEGIANCE. 237 

ing the oath, were kind ; the views of his minister appear to 
me to be, at best, very doubtful. 

But upon what ground do you adopt the invidious charge, 
'' that the belief of the pope's absolute power renders it impos- 
" sible to confide in the catholics, as their consciences were 
" not in their own keeping." Permit me to say, that I spurn 
this charge ; and to assure you, that, if all the roman-catholics 
in the universe were polled, all the roman-catholics in the uni- 
verse would spurn it. A statement of the doctrine of the ro- 
man-catholics upon this head being too long for insertion in 
this place, I refer you for it to doctor Milner's forty-sixth let- 
ter in his " End of Controversy." 

It is particularly strange that you should bring it forward in 
this place, as in two lines nearly preceding it, you have told 
us that the pope forbade the catholics to take the oath proposed 
by James /., yet that they took it without apparent scruple or 
reluctance. You assert, that the doctrine of equivocation was 
publicly taught by the catholic church : it has, on the contra- 
ry, been publicly condemned by her. Thus, when towards 
the end of the seventeenth century, certain loose opinions on 
the practice of it were found in the writings of some foreign 
divines, they were condemned, in the strongest terms, by a na- 
tional assembly of the Galilean clergy in 1700.* 

In a former page, I have cited lord Liverpool's liberal ex- 
pression, that "he heard allusions that night to doctrines 
" which he did hope no one then believed the catholics to en- 

* Bausset's Hist, de Bossuet, vol. 4, liv. xi. s. 9 ; Histoire Generale de 
TElglise, pendant le xviii Siecle, Besancon, 1823, torn, premier, p. 362; 
D'Avrigni's Mem. Chronol. et Dogm. ad annum, 1700 ; and Picot's Me- 
moires pour servir a I'Histoire de TEglise durant le xviii. Siecle, ad an. 
nOO. And see Mr. Alban Butler's Life of sir Tobey Matthews, p. n. 



238 OATH OF ALLEGIANCE. [Letter XVI. 

" tertain :" is not the passage, which I have just transcribed 
from your work, a melancholy proof that there was not all the 
ground his lordship supposed for the hope, which his own hon-. 
curable mmd suggested to him ? 



CHARLES I. 239 



LETTER XVIL 



CHARLES I. 



Sir, 

You are almost entirely silent on the condition of the ro- 
man-catholics during the reign of Charles L — L You should 
have mentioned the artifices then used to inflame the public 
mind against them; their sufferings and loyalty: — IL And 
the solemn judgment of archbishops and bishops of Ireland, 
against the toleration of the roman-catholic religion. 



XVIL 1. 

Jlrtifices then used to inflame the Public Mind against the 
Roman-caUiolics ; their Loyalty and Sufferings. 

They were very great, — Stories, the most absurd and ridi- 
culous, were propagated to inflame the popular spirit against 
them. — Reports were spread of foreign fleets threatening the 
coasts ; of an army of papists training to the use of military 
weapons under ground ; of a plot for blowing up the Thames, 
and drowning the faithful protestant city* What should be 

♦Examination of Neale's History of the Puritans by Grey, vol. 2, p. 260. 



240 CHARLES I. [Letter 

said of the celebrated Hampden, who introduced into the house 
of commons a tailor of Cripplegate, who avowed that, walking 
in the fields, near a bank, he overheard, from the opposite side 
of it, the particulars of a plot, concerted by the priests and oth- 
er papists, for a hundred and eight assassins to murder one 
hundred and eight leading members of parliament, at the rate 
of ten pounds for every lord, and of forty shillings for every 
commoner, so murdered ? Or of the house of commons, who, 
upon this deposition, proceeded to the most violent measures 
against the catholics ] and, under pretence of greater security, 
ordered the trainbands and militia of the kingdom to be in rea- 
diness, and placed under the command of the earl of Essex ? 
Or of the house of lords, who adopted the tailor's report, and 
ordered it to be printed and circulated throughout the king- 
dom ? 

The monarch was, from nature and principle, averse to mea- 
sures of cruelty and oppression; but was easily persuaded, 
when he thought his interest required it, to sacrifice the catho- 
lics to the fury of their enemies. 

The consequences were such as might have been expected : 
proclamation after proclamation issued out against these un- 
happy victims of popular delusion; incarcerations, tortures 
and banishments, repeatedly followed; twenty-three priests 
were hanged and embo welled, and many others were condemn- 
ed, and perished in prison. 

As a specimen of the manner in which the. executions of 
the priests were conducted, I shall transcribe the account given 
of the execution of the reverend Mr. Hugh Green, by an eye- 
witness. 

Upon a proclamation of Charles L commanding all priests to 
depart the realm by a certain day, he went for that purpose to 
Lime, in Dorsetshire, and was going on board a vessel bound 



XVIL] EXECUTION OF PRIESTS. 241 

for France. But he was accosted by a custom-house officer, 
who asked him his name and business : Mr. Green freely told 
it him. The officer observed to him, that the day was passed ; 
that he was not entitled to the benefit of the proclamation ; and 
immediately caused him to be apprehended, and carried before 
a justice of peace. He there pleaded his good intentions of 
obeying the king's orders, and hoped that, as the mistake was 
only of a few days, advantage would not be taken of his candid, 
though unwary, discovery of his character. He was, however, 
sent to Dorchester gaol; and, after five months, was tried and 
condemned, as in cases of high treason, barely for being a 
priest. 

The following account of his martyrdom is copied from 
Mrs. Willoughby's manuscript:* 

" Upon Wednesday, upon the sentence of death being given 
^ against him by judge Foster, he said. Sit nomen Domini Je- 
" su henedictum in secula^ (may the name of the Lord Jesus be 
" for ever blessed.) He should have- died upon Thursday ; and, 
" to that end, the furze was carried to the hill to make the fire ; 
'' and a great multitude of people were in the streets, and at 
" the gates and lanes, to see the execution. But our great mar- 
" tyr did desire to die on Friday, the which was, by a friend of 
" his, procured of the sheriff, though with very much difficulty, 
" being opposed by Millard, the master keeper. And it was 
" noted, that after his sentence, he never went to bed, and eat 
" but very little, scarce enough to sustain nature ; yet he was 
" very cheerful, and full of courage to the lasti 

'^ Now, I beseech our Lord to put his words into my memo*- 
^ ry, that I may expressly relate them, for I have a great scru- 
'' pie to add or take away; and, therefore, I have had the help 
*^ of a true servant of God, who was attentive at his death ; yet 

•Doctor Challoner's Memoirs of Missionary Priests, vol. 2, p. 217. 
21 



242 EXECUTION [Letter 

" we, being two weak women, cannot punctually remember all. 
" Much admired was his devotion : he, kneeling on the hurdle, 
'' made his prayer, and kissed it before he lay down upon it, 
" and continued his prayers until he came to the place of exe- 
" cution ; then he was taken from the hurdle, and stayed on 
" the hill, a good distance from the gallows, until three poor 
" women were hanged. Two of them had sent him word be- 
." fore, that they would die in their faith. O ! what comfort 
" was this to God's true servant, who did all which was possible 
" to see and to speak with them, but could not. Then they 
" sent again to desire him, that when they had made a confes- 
"sion of their sinful life at the gallows, and should give him a 
'* sign, that he then should absolve them ; the which, with 
" great joy on his part, and much benefit on theirs, was per- 
" formed. They two, turning their faces towards us, and 
" throwing forth their arms, cried out to him, ' God he with 
" you^ sir^'^ and so diei; but the third woman turned from us 
" to the press of the people, and so she died, her face or speech 
" never tending towards us. 

" Now I also noted, that our martyr's charity, in this short 
" time of life, was not unrewarded; for God, of his mercy, was 
" pleased to yield him the like comfort, by a reverend father of 
" the society of Jesus, who was there on horseback to absolve 
" him ; the which, with great devotion and reverence, taking off 
*' his cap, and lifting up his eyes and hands to heaven, he re- 
'' ceived from him. 

" I cannot but bless God to see the magnanimity of these 
'' two, our holy martyr, and that reverend father ; — the one, be- 
" ing at the point of death, with such comfort, as his cheerful 
" countenance expressed, and the other not apprehending the 
" great danger he was in, to be taken by the rude multitude, of 
^ whom he should have found no mercy. 

^ Now is our martyr brought to the foot of the ladder by 



XVIL] OF PRIESTS. 243 

" the sheriff, where, falling upon his knees, he remained in de- 
" vout prayer almost half an hour ; then he took his crucifix, 
'' and agnus Dei from his neck, and gave them to this devout 
" gentlewoman, my assistant in this relation ; and his beads he 
^^ gave to another ; also he gave the master-keeper his hand- 
*•' kerchief; and, at last of all, to me, most unworthy, he gave 
" his book of litanies, &c. ; also, from the gallows, he threw 
" me down his band, spectacles, and priest's girdle. Then, 
" turning himself to the people, and blessing himself with the 
^' sign of the cross, he began : 

" There be four principal things which all men ought to re- 
^' member, — death, judgment, heaven and hell. Death is a hor- 
" ror to nature ; but that, which folio weth is much moreterri- 
" ble, uiz. judgment, if we die not as we ought: and as we dis- 
" pose ourselves to good or evil in this life, so shall the mea- 
" sures of our punishment or glory succeed. I am here con- 
" demned to die for my religion, and for being a priest : We 
" know there must be priests ; for God, foretelling of the church 
*' by the prophets, saith, ' Thou art a priest for ever^ according 
" to the order of Melchizedek^^ (Psal. ex.) ' ^nd from the 
" rising of the sun^ unto the going down thereof there shall he 
" a clean sacrifice offered in my name^^ (Malachi, i.) Now, 
" four things are to be considered, — a God, a sacrifice, a priest, 
" a man. God must be served by sacrifice ; this sacrifice must 
" be offered by a priest : and this priest must be a man. Such 
^ am I, and therefore I must die. Wherefore do we receive 
^' holy unction, and are made priests, but to offer sacrifices to 
" God ? But I am condemned for being ordered by the see of 
" Rome, St, Paul saith, ' the Romans have the catholic faith ^"^ 
^ (Rom. i. &c.) and gives God thanks that their faith and his 
" were one: of which catholic faith lam. Against this jRo- 
" man faith all the sectaries cried out; and all heretics that have 



544 EXECUTIONS [Letter 

" been since Christ, oppugn this faith, and yet truly out of it 
'' none can be saved. 

" There be four things more, — one God, one faith, one bap- 
" tism, one church. That there is one God we all acknowledge ; 
" in whom, from whom, and by whom, all things remain and 
" have their being. That there is one faith appears by Christ 
'' praying that saint Peter's faith, (he said not faiths,) should 
'' never fail ; and he promised to be with it to the end of the 
" world. That there is one baptism ; we are all cleansed by the 
" laver of water in the word. That there is one church, holy 
" and sanctified : Does not saint Paul say, that it is a glorious 
'' church, without spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing? Now 
'' the marks of this church are sanctity, unity, antiquit}^, uni- 
" versality, which all of us^ in all points of faith, believe. 
" (Here all the ministers interrupted him, and would have dis- 
" puted with him: but he said he had been five months in pri- 
^ son, and in all that time not any of them had come to dispute 
" with him : there, he would not have refused any of them ; 
" but now, that his time was too short for disputation. So he 
" went on.) But some will say. We are fallen of from the 
" church of Rome ; but in what pope's time, in what prince's 
" reign, or what are the errors, none can discover. No ! this 
" holy church of Christ did never err. We have often offered 
" public disputation, but it would never be accepted. No ! 
" this church can never be impeached of falsehood in matters 
" of doctrine ; though scholars in school-points may differ, 
" but never in points of faith. God is the author of all truth, 
'' and He hath promised to be with it even to the consumma- 
" tion of the world, (St. Matth. xxviii,) until we meet all in the 
" unity of faith, and knowledge of the Son of God, to the end 
" we be not carried away with every blast of doctrine ; because 
" many heresies have risen, with diversities of doctrine, to op- 
" pugn the truth of God's church, as heretofore, Arius, Nesto- 



XVII.] OF PRIESTS. 245 

'^ rius, Wickliffe, and others: so now, in these our latter times, 
" Luther^ Calvin^ Zuingle and the rest, whose doctrines, at 
^ this time, have so inveigled the judgments of this kingdom ; 
'' for God cannot be divided, nor served in many faiths. And 
^ although there have been heretics, yet this roman church re- 
'' sisted, confounded, and condemned all heresies. And Luther 
'' himself confesses, that his religion was not begun by God, 
" neither should it be ended by God. 

" Here a minister, (one Banker, — some say it was the min- 
*' ister who formerly had been a weaver, and now is chaplain 
" to sir Thomas Trencher,) cried out, with a loud voice, He 
^ hlasphemeth ! stop that mouth of the blasphemer ; cast him 
" off the ladder : and so much noise was made by the multi- 
" tude; and the sheriff, to quiet the people, desired our martyr to 
" leave off that discourse; and silence being made, — I truly pity 
^' our poor country, said he, with all my heart, to see whatdivi- 
'^ sions are in it, and in religion no unity among you. Then 
" he began to pray heartily for his majesty, and that this king- 
^ dom might be settled in peace ; the which, he said, would 
" never be, until there vras unity of religion amongst them. 

" Then he said, — I am brought hither for a priest and a trai- 

^' tor. That 1 am a priest I have confessed, and, as such, ought 

" to have left my country, in obedience to his majesty's procla- 

'' mation : I went to receive that benefit for my passage, but 

^' was refused and taken, upon pretence of some few days past 

" beyond the limitation of the aforesaid proclamation, and 

" brought to Dorchester prison, and am now, /or no other cause^ 

" (1 thank God,) than for being a priest^ to die^ and not for 

" any treason to my king or country ; for I protest, before Al- 

" mighty God, I never wished hurt to my king or country in 

'^ my life ; but I prayed for his majesty, and every day in my 

^ memento^ at the holy mass, I offered and recommended him to 

^ God. But there were laws made in queen Elizabeth's days, 

21* 



246 EXECUTION [Letter 

" by which it was made treason to be a priest : by this law I 
^ am condemned for a traitor. But surely, the antient laws of 
" this kingdom would never have done it as the modern doth. 
" And now, judge you whether the laws, so lately made by men, 
" be sufficient to overthrow the authority of God's church, and 
*•' to condemn the professors of it. 

"Nevertheless, I forgive all the world from my heart, and 
" all those who have had a hand in my death ; and I beseech 
" you all, if I have offended any of you in any thing, that you 
" will every one forgive me. I have not had a purpose to give 
" ofi^nce to any of you ; and I pray God give you all his grace 
" to seek him so, as you may be made able to attain his mercy 
" and eternal glory. 

" Then he called to me, and desired me to commend him 
'^ heartily to all his fellow-prisoners and to all his friends. I 
" told him I would ; and that some of them were gone before 
" him, and with joy expected him. Then, on my knees, I 
" humbly begged his benediction ; so did five more of ns ; and 
he cheerfully gave us his blessing, making the sign of the holy 
" cross over our heads. Then one Gilbert Loder^ an attor- 
" ney, asked him, if he did not deserve death, and believe his 
" death to be Just? To which he replied. My death is unjust. 
" So pulling his cap over his face, his hands joined before his 
" breast, in silent prayer, he expected, almost half an hour, his 
<•' happy passage, by the turning of the ladder, for not any one 
" would put a hand to turn it, although the sheriff had spoken 
" to many. I heard one bid him do it himself. At length, he 
" got a country clown, who presently, with the help of the 
" hangman, (who sat astride on the gallows,) turned the lad- 
" der, which being done, he was noted, by myself and others, 
" to cross himself three times with his right hand, as he hang- 
" ed ; but instantly the hangman was commanded to cut him 



XVIL] OF PRIESTS. 247 

" down with a knife, which the constable held up to him, stuck 
'^ in a long stick, although I and others did our uttermost to 
^ have hindered him. Now the fall which he had from the 
" gallows, not his hanging, did a little astonish him ; for that 
" they had willed the hangman to put the knot of the rope at 
" his poll, and not under his ear, as is usual. The man that 
" was to quarter him was a timorous, unskilful man, by trade 
" a barber, and his name was Barefoot^ whose mother, sisters 
'^ and brothers are devout catholics. He was so lonor dismem- 
" bering him, that he came to his perfect senses, and sat up- 
" right, and took Barefoot by the hand to show, (as I believe,) 
'* that he forgave him ; but the people pulled him down with 
^' the rope which was about his neck. Then did this butcher 
" cut his belly on both sides, and turned the flap upon his 
" breast, which the holy man feeling, put his left hand upon 
^' his bowels, and looking on his bloody hand, laid it down by 
" his side ; and lifting up his right hand, he crossed himself, 
^' saying, three times, Jesu^ Jesu^ Jesu^ mercy! — the which, 
" although I am unworthy, I am a witness, for my hand was 
^' on his forehead, and many protestants heard him, and took 
^' great notice of it ; for all the catholics were pressed away by 
" the unruly multitude, except myself, who never left him un- 
" til his head was severed from his body. Whilst he was thus 
^' calling upon Jesus, the butcher did pull a piece of his liver 
" out, instead of his heart, and tumbling his guts out every 
" way, to see if his heart were not amongst them ; then, with 
'' his knife, he raked in the body of this most blessed martyr, 
" who even then called upon Jesus, and his forehead sweat ; 
^' then was it cold, and presently ag'ain it burned; his eyes, 
" nose and mouth, ran over with blood and water. His pa- 
^ tience was admirable ; and when his tongue could no long- 
^ er pronounce that life-giving name, Jesus^ his lips movedj 



248 EXECUTION. [Letter 

'' and his inward groans gave signs of those lamentable tor- 
" ments, which, for more than half an hour, he suffered. Me- 
" thought my heart was pulled out of my body to see him in 
" such cruel pains, lifting up his eyes to heaven, and not yet 
" dead. Then I could no longer hold, but cried out upon 
" them^ that did so torment him ; upon which, a devout gentle- 
" woman, understanding he did yet live, went to Cancola^ the 
" sheriff, who was her uncle^s steward, and, on her knees, be- 
" sought him to see justice done, and put him out of his pains ; 
" who, at her request, commanded to cut off his head : Then, 
" with a knife they did cut his throat, and with a cleaver 
" chopped off his head ; and so this thrice most blessed mar- 
" tyr died. Then was his heart found, and put upon a spear, 
" and showed to the people, and so thrown down into the fire, 
" which was on the side of a hill. They say, this heart did 
" roll from the fire, and that a woman did take it up, and carry 
" it away : this I speak not of my knowledge, but what is here 
" reported to be true, and it may be very probable, because the 
" hill is steep and uneven, and the heart not thrown as usually 
" but from the point of a long spear. Then did this gentle- 
" woman and myself go to the sheriff, and beg his body, the 
" which he freely gave us. INTow did the devil roar, and his 
" instruments, the blinded Dorcestrians, (whom with my soul 
'' I deplored,) did fret and chafe, and told the sheriff that he 
" could not dispose of his quarters to papists, neither should 
" we have them. And t.^uly, I believe, that if we should have 
" offered to carry them away, they would have throw^n both 
" the body and us into the fire ; for our number was but small, 
" and they many thousands. Their fury did so rage against 
" us, that we were forced to withdraw ourselves ; and had I 
^ not procured the master-keeper's wife to have gone back 
" with us to the town, they had stoned us, or done us worse 



XVII. OF PRIESTS. 249 

" harm, as I was told by many credible people ; so great is 
" their malice to catholics. God, in his mercy, pardon and 
" convert them ! From the town we sent a shroud, by a pro- 
" testant woman, to wrap his happy quarters in, whom, it 
" seems, God did send, as on purpose, to do this last office un- 
" to his servant ; for to us all she was a stranger, and lives 
" twelve miles from the town. And when she heard us mourn 
" that none of us durst appear, she with a courage went and 
" saw his quarters put into the shroud, and buried them near 
" to the gallows, although she suffered many affi-onts from the 
" ungodly multitudes, who, from ten o'clock in the morning 
" till four in the afternoon, staid on the hill and sported them- 
" selves at football with his head, and put sticks in his eyes, 
" ears, nose and mouth, and then they buried it near to the 
" body; for they durst not set it upon their gates, because the 
" last before, which was long since martyred amongst them, 
" (Mr. John Cornelius Mohun, a. p. 1594,) they set up his 
" head upon their town gate, and presently there ensued a 
" plague, which cost many of them their lives ; so that still 
" they fear, yet will not amend. God hold his merciful hand 
" over them ; or else, I fear, a severe judgment will befal them 
" for this their last inhuman cruelty. I wish the contrary : 
" and heartily pray, that we may all partake of the prayers and 
" sufferings of this our holy martyr, whose magnanimity and 
" patience were to me both admirable and profitable. And well 
" did one minister say, who was present at his death, amongst 
" forty more of his coat, that if many such men should die, 
" and be suffered to speak as he did, they should soon shut up 
" their books. This is credible, though, for some respects, the 
" man is not named. — Sir, This briefly is what I conceived 
" myself obliged to signify unto you concerning this subject. 



250 LOYALTY OF THE [Letter 

"not doubting but you will conceive the same comfort in read- 
" ing it, as I did in writing the same unto you, who am. Sir, &c. 

"E. Willoughhy?'^ 

'^ The same account was not long after published, in' print, 
" by Chifletius, in his 'Palmae Cleri Anglicani;' and the sub- 
" stance of it is found in the ' Douay Diary^^ 1642. 

"Mr. Green suffered at Dorchester, on Friday the 19th of 
" August, 1642, in the 57th year of his age." 

From the commencement of the reign of Elizabeth, till the 
time of which we are now writing, attempts were unceasingly 
made to fix on the English catholics the odious charge of dis- 
loyalty. Charles L knew it to be wholly groundless ; but too 
often acted as if he believed it : — undeviatingly, however, the 
catholics persevered in duty and loyalty. 

Soon after the commencement of the contest between the 
monarch and his parliament, the latter obtained the command 
of the public money. From this time, the wants of the king 
were entirely supplied from the private purses of his loyal sub- 
jects. The catholics contributed largely to them by volunta- 
ry subscriptions, and, on several occasions, by advancing to 
him two or more years of their annual assessments or compo- 
sitions for recuscancy : " and, no sooner was the standard of 
" loyalty erected," says doctor Milner,* " and permission given 
" for catholics to serve under it, than the whole nobility of that 
" communion, the Winchesters, the Worcesters, the D unbars, 
" the Bellamonts, the Carnarvons, the Powises, the Arundells? 
" the Fauconbergs, the Molineuxes, the Cottingtons, the 
" Mounteagles, the Langdales, &c. &c. with an equal propor- 
" tion of catholic gentry and yeomanry, were seen flocking 

* Letters to a Prebendary, letter rii. 



XVII.] ROMAN-CATHOLICS. 25 1 

^' round it, impatient to wash away, with their blood, the stain 
" of disloyalty, which they had been unjustly constrained to 
" suffer during the greater part of a century, — that is, ever 
" since the accession of Elizabeth. Those catholics who were 
'' possessed of castles and strong holds, turned them into royal 
'' fortresses ; and the rest of them raised what money their es- 
" tates could afford in support of the king and constitution. 
" We may judge of their exertions in this cause, by their suf- 
'^ ferings in it.'' — ^Mr. Dodd* refers to a list before him, — (and 
confirmed by authentic documents,) — of six lieutenant-generals, 
eighteen colonels, sixteen lieutenant-colonels, sixteen majors, 
sixty-nine captains, fourteen lieutenants, five cornets, fifty gen- 
tlemen volunteers, all catholics, who lost their lives, fighting in 
the field for the royal cause. The whole amount of noblemen 
and gentlemen, who thus perished on the side of the king, was 
estimated at five hundred ; nearly two-fifths of them were ca- 
tholics •, — and this considerably exceeded the proportion, 
which the number of the catholics were at this time to that of 
the protestants, of the same rank in society. 

Several contemporary waiters, among the protestants, did jus- 
tice to the canduct of the catholics : '' It is a truth beyond all 
" question," says doctor Stanhope, " that there were a great 
" many noble, brave and loyal spirits of the roman-catholic 
" persuasion, who did, with the greatest integrity, and without 
" any other design than satisfying conscience, adventure their 
" lives in the war for the king's service ;" and that " several, 
" if not all of these men, were of such souls, that the greatest 
'^ temptation in the world would not have prevented or made 
" them desert their king in his greatest miseries."! — *' The 

* Hist. vol. 3, part vi. art. 5. 

tThe surest Establishment of the Throne, p. 30, cited by Dodd, vol. 5, 
p. 31. 



25^ LOYALTY OF THE, &c. [Letter 

" English papist," says another writer,* " for his courage and 
'' loyalty in the first war, deserves to be recorded in history ; 
" and perhaps this may be worthy of notice, — that, whenever 
'- the usurper, or any of his instruments of blood or sycophan- 
" cy, resolved to take away the life or estate of a papist, it was 
" his loyalty, not his religion, that exposed him to their rapine 
" and buchery." 

Other protestants have not done so much justice to the catho- 
lics : perhaps you will be of opinion, that lord Clarendon should 
have said more of their fidelity to Charles 11. after the defeat of 
the royal army at Worcester,— than that " it must never be de- 
'^ nied, that some of their religion had a great share in his ma- 
'^ jesty's preservation," — when you are informed, that, during 
the six first days after that disaster, his majesty was wholly in 
the hands and under the protection of the catholics. Fifty-two 
of that religion were apprised of the secret: some of these 
were in low circumstances ; but neither fear nor hope induced 
even one of them to swerve from his fidelity. On the sixth 
day his majesty reached the house of Mr. Lane ; from this time 
he was in the hands of protestants, who served him with equal 
fidelity. In their praise, the noble historian is minute and elo- 
quent; but of the fifty-two loyal catholics, he mentions only fa- 
ther Huddlestone, a benedictine monk.f It should be added, that 
at the time of the death of Charles I. the Irish catholics were 
the only compact body, throughout the extent of the British 

* State of Christianity in England, by a protestant clergyman, said to 
be a bishop, p. 25 ; also cited by Dodd, in the place referred to. 

+ See Dodd's Hist. vol. 3, partvii., book i., art. 1. From a manuscript 
signed by father Huddlestone and by Mr. Whitgraveof Moseley, at whose 
house the monarch was concealed two days and two nights, Mr. Dodd 
gives the particulars of the monarch's wanderings which followed the 
battle, and the names of the fifty-two catholics entrusted with the secret. 



XVII.] TOLERATION CONDEMNED, &c. 253 

empire, which had preserved, untainted and unshaken, their 
loyalty to the royal cause.* 

Much of the landed property of the roman-catholics was 
confiscated : it would not be estimating the amount of it too 
high to assert, that the adherence of the roman-catholics of 
England to Charles I. and his son, cost them one-third, at least, 
of their real, and one-half, at least, of their personal estates. 

Thirteen priests suffered for their religion during the reign 
of Charles I. ; eleven under the Usurpation ; and, during the 
last period, further severities were inflicted on the roman- 
catholics. 



XVIL 2. 

Solemn Judgment of Archbishops and Bishops of Ireland^ 
against the Toleratiofi of the Roman-catholic Religion. 

A F AIRE 11, a more learned, or a more honourable name than 
that of archbishop Usher, the church of England cannot pro- 
duce : — yet, did this venerable man, with a file of musketeers, 
enter the catholic chapel in Cork street, Dublin, during the ce- 
lebration of divine service, seize the priest in his vestments, 
and hew down the crucifix : — ^yet, did this venerable man, 
with eleven other Irish prelates, sign what is termed, " The 
^ judgment of diverse of the archbishops and bishops of Ire- 
" land on the toleration of religion ;" — and declare by it, " that 
^ the religion of the papists was superstitious and idolatrous; 
^ their faith and doctrine erroneous and heretical; their 
" church, in respect to both, apostatical ; that to give them, 
" therefore, a toleration, or to consent that they may freely 

•See Mr. Plowdcn's Historical lUvieuj of the State of Ireland, an able 
and instructive work, vol. 1, c 4L 
22 



464 TOLERATION CONDEMNED [Letter 

" exercise their religion, is a grievous sin.'' — It is observable 
too,* that this took place at a time when Charles I. was in his 
greatest distress ; and the catholics of Ireland were straining 
every nerve to serve him. 

I beg of you to observe, that, in this solemn doctrinal judg- 
ment of the Irish prelacy, nothing is said, nothing is insinuat- 
ed respecting the conduct, the civil principles, or even the civil 
tendency of the religious principles of the roman-catholics, or 
their religion. Toleration is denied to them. wholly, and 
merely, for their religion ; for the heresy and errors of their 
faith and doctrine, and for the apostacy of their church : — Upon 
these accounts, and upon these accounts only, " a gi^nt of to- 
" leration to their religion" is declared " to be a sin." 

Here then I take my stand :- — I call upon you to consider 
all you have heard or read of the history of the roman-catho- 
lic church, in any age, or in any country; — I desire you 
to place before you all that the most intolerant roman-catho- 
lics have said or written ; — I then- defy you to produce one 
single instance, in which the detestable dogma of religious in- 
tolerance has been more explicitly, solemnly, or unqualifiedly 
propounded. . . . 

Should it then be attributed to protestants as a tenet of their 
creed ? . . . This, — I do not say : — But I do say, — that, if it 
should not be attributed to the protestant church, no intolerant 
deed or doctrine of roman-catholic individuals, however emi- 
nent in rank or character, should be attributed to the roman- 
catholic church. 

Surely the archbishop must have forgotten the just rebuke, 
which, not long before this time, he himself had given to a 
clergyman for a want of charity. Being wrecked on a deso- 

* See Plow den's Historical Review of the State of Ireland, vol. 1. c. 4 ; 
an able and instructive work. 



XVIL] BY IRISH PRELATES. 255 

late part of the Irish coast, he applied to a cler^man for re- 
lief; and stated, without mentioning his name or rank, his own 
sacred profession. The clergyman rudely questioned it, and 
told him peevishly, that " he doubted whether he knew the 
" number of the commandments." " Indeed I do," replied the 
archbishop mildly, "there are eleven." "Eleven!" said the 
•clergyman, "tell me the eleventh, and I will assist you." 
" Obey the eleventh," said the archbishop, " and you certainly 
" will." — " A new commandment I give unto you, — that ye 
" love one another." 



256 CHARLES 11. [Letter 



LETTER XVIIL 



CHARLES lU 



Sir, 

For some passages in the chapter of your work at which I 
am now arrived, you have my sincere thanks •, to others, I ob* 
ject. The principal of these I shall now proceed to men- 
tion : — L I shall first notice your defence of Charles IL's vio- 
lation of his promise at Breda to the roman-catholics and the 
protestant dissenters. In a note I shall show a near resem- 
blance between this conduct of Charles, and the conduct of 
the British government towards the Irish roman-catholics at 
the time of the Union : — IL I shall then shortly advert to some 
of your criminations of the roman-catholics in your present 
chapter: — IIL Then, briefly notice the Corporation and Test 
Acts : — IV. Then, suggest to you some considerations on the 
act of the thirtieth of Charles II. which disables roman-catho- 
lic peers and commoners from sitting and voting in parliament : 
— ^V. Then, mention Gates' plot : — VI. Then, notice James 
II. the Bill of Rights, and the Acts of Settlement : — VII. Then, 
conclude my letter, with some observations upon your repeat- 
ed charges against us of Superstition and Idolatry. 



XVIIL] DECLARATION AT BREDA. 257 



XVIII. 1. 

Doctor Souiheips Defence of Charles II? s Violation of his 
Promise^ at Breda^ to the Roman-catholics and Protestant 
Dissenters, 

Permit me to mention, that I have read with surprise this 
defence. "A fair promise," — I copy your own words, — " was 
" held forth, in the declaration, that the most conciliatory mea- 
" sures should be pursued." It was then said, — " because the 
" passions and uncharitableness of the times have produced se- 
" veral opinions in religion, by which men were engaged in 
" parties and animosities against each other, which, when they 
" shall hereafter meet in a freedom of conversation, will be 
" composed or better understood, we do declare a liberty to 
" tender consciences ; and that no man shall be disquieted or 
" called in question for difference of opinion in matters of re- 
" ligion, which do not disturb the peace of the kingdom ; and 
" that we shall be ready to consent to such an act of parlia- 
^' ment, as, upon mature deliberation, shall be offered to or for 
" the full granting that indulgence." 

You say, that " Charles was sincere in this promise : that 
" it arose from a just and honourable sentiment of shame, that 
" laws so severe against the roman-catholics should continue 
" to exist, after the political necessity for them had ceased." — 
" But Charles," — ^you afterwg^rds say, — "did not think himself 
" bound by his declaration from Breda, to say any thing more 
" upon the subject of religion, than to pass such an act as the 
" parliament might think proper to offer." — None was offered, 
and Charles was, therefore, in your opinion altogether imaf- 

fected by his promise. 

22* 



258 PROMISES AT THE [Letter 

But, was the promise thus understood at Breda ? Could the 
catholics, so much of whose blood bad been spilt, so much of 
whos% money had been wrenched from them, so many of 
whose estates had been confiscated in the cause of Charles's 
father and his own ; — could the protestant dissenters, who had 
been so active in promoting the restoration, and, without whose 
conspiration, it could not have been effected ; — could any of 
Charles's council, who knew the views, the feelings and the 
expectations of the parties ; — could any man then acquainted 
with the circumstances of the case, — ^have put this construc- 
tion upon the monarch's word ? A construction under which 
the protestant dissenters must have remained open to the in- 
flictions of the statutes of recuscancy, and under which the ro- 
man-catholics must have continued subject to these, and also 
to the rack and the gibbet ? 

Did not the promise at Breda imply, that all the influence 
of government should be used in procuring such an act of par- 
liament as it mentions ? Were not all the powers of govern- 
ment used to the contrary ? Were not new restrictions and 
new penalties inflicted, both upon the roman-catholics and the 
protestant dissenters ? — Could this be the fair construction of 
the act ? 

Unfortunately, however, it was adopted ; and the monarch 
quietly consigned both the protestant dissenters and the roman- 
catholics to the subsisting pains, penalties and miseries. — In 
this you think him justified! 

"Thus," to use the language of Hume, " all the king's fine 
'' promises and indulgences to tender consciences were eluded 
" and broken ! It is true that Charles, in his declaration from 
" Breda, had expressed his intention to regulate that indul- 
" gence by the advice and authority of parliament; but the li- 
" mitation could never reasonably be extended to a total in- 



XVIII.] UNION WITH IRELAND. 259 

" fringement of all his arrangements." No one knows better 
than yourself that Hume's inclination led him to defend the 
monarch a toute outrarK^e ; and that nothing short of the high* 
est degree of glaring criminality would have induced Hume to 
condemn him * 



*The conduct of the British government to the Irish roman- 
catholics, at the time of the Union, has been said to resemble 
the conduct of Charles 11. to the roman-catholics and protest- 
ant dissenters, after his restoration. 

That a prospect of emancipation was held out to the Irish 
catholics, to induce them to support the government measure 
of the union, seems to be undeniable. 

1. JVhen Mr, Pitt proposed the articles of union to the 
house of commons, he thus expre-ssed himself : — " No man 
" can say, that, in the present state of things, and while Ireland 
" remains a separate kingdom^ full concessions can be made to 
" the catholics, without endangering the state, and shaking the 
" constitution to the centre." Is not this saying, that, after 
the union should have taken place, full concessions to Ireland 
might be made without dano^er ? Would not the catholics ne- 
cessarily understand that these concessions would then be 
made ? 

2. Such was the language of the minister who proposed the 
union. What is the language of the Act of the Union ? 
" That every one of the lords and commons of the parliament 
" of the United Kingdom, and every member of the United 
" Kingdom, in the first and every succeeding parliament, shall, 
" until the parliament of the united Kingdom otherwise pro- 
" vide J take the oaths now provided to be taken." — Is not this 
an explicit intimation, that a change of oaths, after the union^ 
in favour of the catholics was then contemplated } that a sure 
and certain hope of it was held out to them } 

3. How did Mr, Pitt himself understand the terms of the 
concessions ? — Let this be answered in his own words. When 
he explained the cause and motives of his memorable resigna- 
tion, he thus expressed himself : — " I, and some of my col- 
" leagues in office, did feel it an incumbent duty upon us to 



960 PROMISES AT THE [Letter 

" propose a measure on the part of the government, which 
" under the oircumstances of the union, so happily effected 
" between the two countries, we thought of great public im- 
" portance, and necessary to complete the benefits likely to re- 
" suh from the measure. We felt this opinion so strongly, 
" that, when we met with circumstances which rendered it 
" impossible for us to propose it as a measure of government, 
" we felt it equally inconsistent with our duty and our honour 
'' any longer to remain a part of government. What may be 
" the opinion of others^ I knoiv not ; hut I leg to have it un^ 
" der stood to he a measure^ which^ if I had remained in go- 
" vernment^ I must have proposed?"^ 

Does not Mr. Pitt unequivocally avow in these words, that 
he was bound in honour to propose the emancipation of the 
catholics ? 

4. I shall now insert the written communications^ ivhich^ at 
the time of which we are noio speakings were made hy Mr, Pitt 
and lord Coimwallis^ and officially delivered by lord Castle- 
reagh to doctor Troy, the catholic archbishop in Dublin. 

" Mr. Pitt to lord CornwalliSj 

" The leading part of his majesty'* s ministers^ finding in- 
" sunnountahle obstacles to the bringing forward measures of 
'' concession to the catholic body vjhilst in qffice^have felt it im- 
''^possible to continue in adininistration^ under the inability to 
" propose it^ with the circumstances necessary to carrying the 
" measure^ with all its advantages; and they have retired from 
'' his majesty's service, considering this line of conduct as 
" most likely to contribute to its ultimate success. The ca- 
" tholic body will, therefore, see how much their future hopes 
" must depend upon strengthening their cause by good con*- 
'' duct in the mean time : they will prudently consider their 
" prospects as arising from the persons who now espouse their 
" interests, and compare them with those which they could 
" look to from any other quarter ? they may^ loith confidence^ 
" rely on the zealous support of all those who retire^ and of 
" many who remain in office^ when it can be given with a pros- 
" pect of success. They may be assured, that Mr. Pitt will 
" do his utmost to establish their cause in the public favour, 
" and prepare the way for their finally attaining their objects; 
" and the catholics \Yill feel, that as Mr, Pitt could not concur 



XVIII.] UNION WITH IRELAND. 261 

^ in an hopeless attempt to force it now, that he raiust at all 
^' times repress, with the same decision as if he held an ad- 
" verse opinion, any unconstitutional conduct in the catholic 
" body. 

" Under these circumstances, it cannot be doubted that the 
" catholics will take the most loyal, dutiful and penitent line of 
" conduct : that thev will not suffer themselves to be led into 
" measures, which can, by any construction, give a handle to 
" the opposers of their wishes, either to misinterpret their prin- 
" ciples, or to raise an argument for resisting their claims : but 
" that, by their prudent and exemplary demeanour, they will 
" afford additional grounds to the growing number of their ad- 
" vocates, to enforce their claims on proper occasions, until 
" their object can be finally and advantageously attained." 

5. The Sentiments of a Sincere friend^ (i. e. Marquis Corn- 
wallis^) to the Catholic Claims : 

" If the catholics should now proceed to violence, or entertain 
" any ideas of gaining their object by convulsive measures, or 
^ forming associations with men of Jacobinical principles, they 
" must of course lose the support and aid of those who have 
^ sacrificed their own situations in their cause, but who would, 
^ at the same time, feel it to be their indispensable duty to op- 
** pose every thing tending to confusion. 

" On the other hand, should the catholics be sensible of the 
" benefit they posses^, by having so many characters of emi- 
" nence pledged not to embark in the service of government^ ex- 
" cept on the terms of the catholic privileges being obtained^ it 
" is to be hoped, that, on balancing the advantages and disad- 
'^ vantages of their situation, they would prefer a quiet and 
" peaceable demeanour to any line of conduct of an opposite 
" description." 

6. In the debate^ in the house of commons^ on the petition of 
the Irish catholics^ on Wednesday the 25th of May^ ISOSj Mr. 
Elliot thus expressed himself : 

" I do not rise for the purpose of entering into any discus- 
" sion on the general topic, but in consequence of what has fal- 
" len from my noble friend opposite, (lord Castlereagh,) ijiere- 
" ly to advert to the circumstance of the union, of which I may 
'^ be supposed to have sonve official knowledge; and the nature 
" of the expectation held out to the catholics^ in order to concil- 



262 CONDUCT OF CATHOLICS [Letter 

^' iate their acquiescence in this measure. My noble friend has 
" said, that no pledge was given to the catholics, that their full 
" emancipation was to be the immediate consequence of this 
" measure, in consideration of their support. It is true, indeed, 
" that no bond was given to the catholics on that point ; but 
" there were certainly expectations, and something like pro- 
" mises held out to them, which^ in my mind^ ought to he more 
" binding than a bond. And so strongly was this idea felt by 
'' my noble friend, and the right honourable gentleman now no 
^^ more, (Mr. Pitt,) that they quitted office because they could 
" not carry the measure ; and, when upon Mr. Pitt's return to 
" office, he opposed the going into the committee, it was not 
" from any objection tothe measure, but to the time." 

7. Finally, lord Castlereogh^ in his amir able speech on 
ike motion made by Mr. Grattan^ in the year 1819, — a large 
extract from which is inserted in the Historical Memoirs of the 
English, Irish and Scottish Catholics, — ^notices, " the political 
" incorporation of catholics and protestants^ which^ upon cer- 
" tain principles, was in contemplation by Mr. Pitt and those 
" who acted with him at the time of the union." 



XVIIL 2. 

Doctor Southey'^s Criminations of the Roman-catholics in 
his present Chapter. 

1. "It was believed," as you inform us, " that the late trou- 
" bles," — (meaning the grand rebellion and tlie usurpation,) — 
" had been insidiously fomented by romish agents, wdth a view 
" of promoting the romish cause." What evidence have you 
brought to substantiate these horrid suggestions? — suggestions 
completely destitute of probability, and flatly contradicted by 
the long preceding suflferings, and heroic exertions of the ro- 
man-catholics, in the royal cause. 

2. "It was then certain," you say, " that the catholics had 
" profited by the late troubles^ and had made more converts 



XVIIL] DURING THE USURPATION. 263 

" than in any former generation.'^^ What ! profited by the par- 
liamentary sequestrations of two-thirds of their property ! You 
must admit that this was an extraordinary species of profit. 
As to their success in making converts, — I call upon you to 
prove the fact ; it is diametrically contrary to all I have seen, 
heard, or read. 

3. You then mention, that " the catholics reviled the Ma- 
^ rian martyrs in a strain which showed how willingly they 
" would have commenced another persecution." To me this 
is altogether new, and I believe it wholly unfounded ; but I 
beg leave to observe to you, that some of the Lutheran protes- 
tants spoke of the suffering Marians in very contumelious terms. 
Doctor Maclaine* informs us, that they proceeded so far as to 
call them "the devil's martyrs." 

4. You say, that " the catholics had slighted the king in his 
'' exlleP 1 am aware that this is intimated by lord Clarendon ; 
but does he mention a single instance in which they conduct- 
ed themselves in this manner ? or a single fact which proves 
his charge ? The whole tenor of their conduct to Charles I. 
during the contest between him and his parliament, and to 
Charles U. during his concealment after the battle of Worces- 
ter, so disingenuously concealed by Lord Clarendon^ renders 
the charge utterly improbable. Clarendon's excessive dislike, 
both of the rornan-catholics and the protestant dissenters, is an 
acknowledged blemish in his character. Catholic and loyal 
are synonymous terms: — You know, that, when Mirabeau 
wished to republicanize his countrymen, he said, "i/ faut con^ 
^ men(^er x^ar decatholi(^er la Fran^eP 

5. You accuse the roman-catholics of " having treated with 
" Cromwell, for taking an oath of submission to his govern- 

* Translation of Mosheim's History, 2d edit vol. 4, p. 187. 



264 CORPORATION [Letter 

" ment, as the price of that indulgence which he, in his true 
" spirit of toleration, was willing to have granted ?" 

But would not such an oath of submission have been justi- 
fiable ? Would it not have been warranted, both by every ac- 
knowledged principle of national law, and by univeraal usage ? 
But the fact is not as you represent it. — The treaty was never 
closed ; those who engaged in it were very few ; and they 
were disavowed. White, a roman-catholic-clergyman, who 
took an active part in it, fell into great disrepute, and was re- 
proached for his conduct till his latest breath. 

You acquit the roman-catholics of being the authors of the 
Jlre of London : You call it a " senseless calumny." Then, 
why is this calumny perpetuated by a national monument, and 
the inscription upon it ? Does there exist in any roman-ca- 
tholic country, with the consent of its government, a monu- 
mental marble, that thus, 

" Lifts its head, and lies /" — Pope; 

and excites against one portion of the community the preju- 
dice and animosity of the other ? 



XVIII. 3. 

The Corporation and Test Acts. 

1. I DO not recollect that you take notice of the Corpora- 
tion Act* The roman-catholics are, in common with the pro- 
testant dissenters, subject to its penal inflictions. The object 
of it was to exclude from corporations some disafiected per- 
sons, who had obtained admission into them during the preced- 

•ISCar. II.s.2,c. 1,(1661.) 



XVIII.] AND TEST ACTS. 265 

ing troubles: it was not, therefore, directed against the roman- 
catholics, and should not be continued in force against them. 
In fact, the object of this act having long waved entirely, is it 
not clear that the time for its total repeal is arrived } 

2. Of the Test Act* I shall only observe, that it was passed 
under the strong apprehensions then entertained, of a roman- 
catholic successor to the British throne ; an event which the bill 
of rights has now rendered utterly impossible : no good rea- 
son can, therefore, be now assigned for keeping it in force. 



XVIII. 4. 

The Act of the SOth of Charles 11.^ which excludes Ro- 
man-catholics from sitting and voting in Parliament. 

In 1821, a bill was brought into parliament for the repeal of 
this act; it passed the house of commons, but was lost in the 
house of lords. While it was on the table of that noble house, 
your correspondent published " An Inquiry into the Declara- 
^ tion against Transuhstantiation^ contained in the act of the 
" 30th of Charles II, which excluded roman-caiholics from 
" parliament?'^ I hope you will excuse my inserting it in this 
letter, which I have now the honour of addressing to you. 

" In a few days, the bill, which has passed the house of com^ 
'^ mons, to relieve roman-catholic peers from the disabilities 
imposed upon them by the act of the 30th of Charles II. with 
regard to their right of sitting and voting in the house of peers, 
will come under the consideration of the members of that no-» 
ble house. 



23 



*25Car. II. c. 2. 

t 30 Car. U. 5. 2, c. 1, 



266 EXCLUSION FROM [Letter 

'^ It is most clear that every generous mind will wish it suc- 
cess : — ^What peer can behold, indifferent and unmoved, the 
duke of Norfolk and the other roman-catholic peers, listemng 
to a debate which is to decide, whether, in the time to come, 
they are to enjoy their hereditary seat in the house, or thefr 
ignominious exclusion from it is to remain forever ? 

" Assuredly it must be acknowledged, that either to make it 
the duty or to reconcile it to the feelings of any peer, to vote 
for a continuance of this exclusion, the very strongest case 
must be supposed ; — or, in other words, that it must be de- 
monstratively proved, that the admission of half a dozen cath- 
olic peers to exercise their hereditary right of sitting and voting 
in the house of peers, will ex|K>se his majesty's person and 
government to real danger. — Nothing short of this can justify 
a measure, thus bitter and contumelious. Now, can the exist- 
ence of this danger be gravely contended ? — Has the crown, 
the state, or the law any better friends ? Any, upon whose 
loyalty and attachment, under all imaginable circumstances, 
they can more confidently or more completely rely, than those^ 
who profess the roman-catholic religion ? 

'' This, the divine eloquence of Mr. Fox, Mr. Pitt, Mr. 
Burke, Mr. Grattan, Mr. Canning, Mr. Flunkett, and the other 
illustriovis advocates of the catholic cause, has repeatedly urg- 
ed. I trust that these noble effusions of oratory are present to 
the recollection of every noble personage, before whom the 
subject now comes for discussion. The wickedness of the act 
of Charles II., its injustice and impolicy, and the injustice and 
impolicy of preserving it in activity in the present state of 
things, were unanswerably proved by the right honourable mov- 
er of the bill.* His speech is deservedly the theme of uni- 

* The Right honourable George Canning. 



XVIIL] PARLIAMENT. 267 

versal admiration and applause. In the memory of the grateful 
catholics it will ever live. They are an honourable body ; — 
a person, who has thus deserved well of them, has not lived in 
vain. 

" The bill is now on the table of the house of lords; and 
their lordships are now to decide on its justice and policy. On 
the latter, I shall say nothing ; but I beg leave to offer some 
observations on the former. I submit them in a particular man- 
ner, (but with the utmost deference and humility,) to the vene- 
rable prelates of the national church. To their opinions and 
feelings,' especially on all questions that regard religious or mo- 
ral bearings of any legislative measure, the house, (and I may 
add,) the public at large, pay the greatest respect. — Their at- 
tention, therefore, to the following observations may, without 
impropriety, be, I apprehend, particularly solicited. 

" The point which I mean to consider is. Whether a Pro- 
testant OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND Can conscieutiously 
make the declaration against transubstaniiation and the invo- 
cation of saints contained in the act of the SOth of Charles IL 
and required by that act to he taken hy the members of both 
houses before they sit and vote in parliament, 

" This declaration is a solemn affirmation : — ^The Divine 
Being is solemnly adjured to witness it; and to attest the par- 
ty's belief that what he affirms is true : — The declaration, there- 
fore, is a sacred act of religion. 

" Every person, who makes this declaration, swears, " That 
" he doth believe that there is not any transubstantiation of the 
" elements of bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ, 
'' at or after the consecration thereof by any person whomso^ 
" ever :" — and that, " the invocation or adoration of the Virgin 
" Mary or any other saint, and the sacrifice of tlie mass, as 



268 OATH AGAINST [Letter 

" they are now used^ in the church of Rome^ are superstitious 
" and idolatrous^^ 

" All must admit, that to make this declaration, and to swear 
to it with a safe conscience, the person who makes it, and 
swears to the belief of its truth, has a clear and precise know- 
ledge of the meaning of all the words which it contains ; and 
should, therefore, clearly understand what the words sacra- 
ment, transubstantiation, invocation, adoration and the sacrifice 
of the mass, mean, in the sense in which they are propounded 
in the declaration. 

" Now — can it be seriously said that this is the case ? 

"1. As a preliminary observation, I may remark, that the 
declaration expressly terms that religious rite^ which is called 
our Lord'^s Supper^ a sacrament : — But — the disciples df 
Hoadley^ {and these nnquestionahly form a large proportion 
of the clergy of the church of England^) deny even the ex- 
istence of a sacrament; — all the disciples of that distinguished 
prelate think the word "sacrament" is a word without a mean- 
ing. When therefore, in the declaration, they call " our Lord's 
" Supper" a " sacrament," they call it that, which they them- 
selves affirm to have no existence. Can it be said that any, 
who are of this opinion, can make the declaration with a safe 
conscience? 

" 2. Without dwelling on this point, (which however seems 
to deserve some consideration,) permit me to ask if a person 
can conscientiously affirm upon his oath^ that " there is not 
'• any transubstantiation in the sacrament^'^ unless by due in^ 
quiry he has previously ascertained that there is none ? 

" To ascertain this, he must settle that the word transubstan- 

* Doctor Southey will, perhaps, inform us, in some future edition of his 
" Book of the Church," whether protestants may conscientiously take 
this oath. 



XVIIL] TRANSUBSTANTIATION. 269 

tiation uniformly means the absolute annihilation of one sub- 
stance, and the substitution of another in its place; and that it 
is never used by approved writers to mean the transference of 
one substance into another. If the word transubstantiation 
bear the latter meaning, no protestant, who believes the real 
presence, (and all protestants of the established church of Eng- 
land profess to believe it,) can conscientiously swear, or even 
simply affirm the negative. — Now, that the transubstantiation 
will bear the latter meaning, some of the most eminent lights 
of the church of England are agreed.* — Can it then be thought 
decent, — can it be considered consistent with the sacredness of 
an oath, to swear to the belief of the contrary, without any li- 
mitation or explanation whatever ? 

" 3. Other words in the declaration are a fair subject for a 
similar inquiry. Admitting, however, (but we humbly conceive 
this is not always the case,) that the party who makes the de- 
claration fully understands the meaning of all these words, can 
he, with a safe conscience, declare upon his oath, that the sac- 
rifice of the mass, the invocation of the Virgin Mary, and the 
other saints, as used in the church of Rome, " are superstitious 
" and idolatrous ?" Surely, to make this declaration upon 
oath^ with a safe conscience^ a person should possess a clear 
knowledge of the doctrines of the catholic church of Rome on 
all these heads, — Now, those only can be said to have this 
knowledge, who have read the expositions given of them by the 
church of Rome in her own decrees, or by her own approved 
writers. How very few have examined either ! 

♦ See the Essay on Catholic Communion, 8vo. : the work of a protes* 
tant divine, first published in the year 1704. The third and best edition 
was printed in 1812. In refering to this work, I refer ^Iso to thp author- 
ities cited in it. 

23* 



270 OATH AGAINST [Letter 

" 4. We shall first consider iransuhstaniiation and the mass, 
" Doctor Taylor J the bishop of Down, than whom the whole 
protestant church boasts no fairer name, and who had fully ex- 
amined the points in question, declared, after his examination 
of them, that the doctrine of the catholic church upon them 
was not idolatrous.* " The object," says this learned and elo- 
quent prelate, " of their adoration in the sacrament, i^ the only 
*' true and eternal God, hypostatically united with his holy hu- 
*•' manity, which humanity they believe actually present under 
••' the veil of the sacrament : — and, if they thought him notpre- 
••' sent, they are so far from worshipping the bread, that they pro- 
>' fess it idolatry to do so. This is a demonstration that the 
'•' soul has nothing in it that is idolatrical ; the will has nothing 
••' in it that is not a great enemy to idolatry." — Thorndykey the 
learned prebendary of Westminster,! mentions with indig- 
nation that a charge of idolatry should be brought against 
catholics, in consequence of their belief of transubstantiation. 
'} Will any papist," says this distinguished waiter, '• acknow- 
•* ledge that he honours the elements of the eucharist for God ? 
'- will common sense charge him with honouring that in the 
" sacrament, which he believes not to be there ?" — " It is a 
" monstrous error," says bishop Cosin^l " to deny that Christ 
••' is to be adored in the eucharist." 

'* Many other protestant authorities to the same effect might 
be cited, but this is not a place for such citations. We must 
however beg leave to add bishojj Kenn^s expression in his 
^' Exposition.)'^^ licensed in 1685, — '^^O God incarnate, how 
^' thou canst give us thy flesh to eat, and thy blood to drink ; 
^' how thy flesh is meat indeed; how thou, who art in heaven, 

* In his Liberty of Prophecy, sect. 20. 
I Just Weights and Measures, c. 1 9. 
I History of Transubstantiation. 



XVIII.] TRANSUBST ANTIATION 2 7 1 

'^ art present upon the altar, I can by no means explain : but I 
" firmly believe it all, because thou hast said it." 

" Where such high authorities concur in a deliberate and so- 
lemn opinion upon any subject, it certainly is allowable to dis- 
sent from them; but, is it allowable, is it decent, is it even safe 
to affirm a contrary opinion upon oath ? — To do i* after a long 
and serious examination is somewhat hazardous ; to do it with- 
out any examination, must be rashness in the extrem.e. 

" What would the barons of the exchequer have said of a 
person, who, on a late trial for the adulteration of beer, had 
sworn that no quassia had been infused into it, and had after- 
wards confessed on cross examination, that he took what he 
said upon trust, and had himself never examined the compo- 
sition ? — Where is the real difference between the cases ? Does 
it require. less rectitude to swear, — but the awfulness of the sub- 
ject withholds me from pursuing the interrogation. 

"' We may ask, whether, if idolatry be chargeable on tran- 
sulstantiation^ it be not chargeable, with equal justice, on 
consubstantiation and impanation^ one or other of which is 
maintained in every protectant creed? if it be chargeable on 
these doctrines, it evidently ' follows, that, when a person 
swears transubstantiation to be idolatrous, he equally swears 
to his belief, that all who maintain the doctrine of the real pre- 
sence, whether catholic or protestant, are idolaters ; — that all 
his own catholic ancestors were idolaters *, — that all existing 
roman-catholics are idolaters ; — that all the members of the 
Greek church, and the oriental churches, are idolaters; — that 
the fathers of the established church of England, Cranmer, 
Ridley, and the other protestant divines, w^ho framed the com- 
munion service in 1548, were idolaters; — that queen Eliza- 
beth, who patronized the doctrine of the real presence, was an 
idolater; — that the eminent divines, who, by her desire, framed 



272 OATH AGAINST [Letter 

the thirty-nine articles and the liturgy, in terms designedly so 
comprehensive, as to let in the believers of transubstantiation, 
were idolaters ; — and, (if we believe doctor Bramhall^ bishop 
of Derry,) that all true believers of the genuine doctrine of the 
church of England are idolaters. " No genuine son of that 
" church," says this celebrated prelate,'^ "did ever deny a true 
" real presence." 

" If idolatry is chargeable on consubstantiation, as much as 
it is on transubstantiation, (and it would most assuredly be 
found difficult to show that it is not,) then, as consubstantiation 
is an acknowledged tenet of the Augustan confession, and 
therefore received by every lutheran, our late venerable mon- 
arch married an idolater. 

"5. Thus far respecting transubstantiation and the mass. 
We proceed to the doctrine of the invocation of the Virgin 
Mary and the other saints, 

"We have seen that every person, who makes the declara- 
tion, affirms, upon oath, his belief that these doctrines, as they 
are used in the church of Rome, are " idolatrous and super- 
" stitiousP . 

"But, of those, who thus swear this doctrine of the church 
of Rome to be idolatrous and superstitious, how few, how very 
few, have taken due pains to ascertain it ! I beg leave to state 
this doctrine of the catholic church, in a very few lines, from 
authorities which all must allow to be unquestionable. 

" It was thus defined at the Council of Trent^ by the pope, 
and nearly 300 roman-catholic prelates, assembled from every 
part of the catholic world : — " The saints reigning with Christ, 
" offer up their prayers to God for men ; it is good and useful 
" suppliantly to invoke them, and to have recourse to their 
" prayers, help and assistance, to obtain favours from God, 

♦Answer to Militiere's Triumph of Truth, p. 74. 



XVIIL] INVOCATION OF SAINTS. 273 

" through his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who is alone our 
" Redeemer and Saviour." 

" In conformity to this doctrine, the Catechism of Pope Pi- 
us V. teaches, that " God and the saints are not to be prayed 
" to in the same manner; for we pray to God that he himself 
" would give us good things, and deliver us from evil things ; 
'^ but we beg of the saints, (because they are pleasing to God,) 
" that they would be our advocates, and obtain from him what 
" we stand in need of." This is most explicitly taught in all 
our catechisms. Eoman-catholic children, in their very first 
catechism, are asked the following questions, and give the fol- 
lowing answers : — Q. "Does the second commandment forbid 
" the making of images ? A. It forbids the making of them 
" so as to adore them ; that is, it forbids making them our 
" gods — Q. Does this commandment forbid all honour and 
" veneration of the saints and angels ? A. No ; we are to 
" honour them as God's special friends and servants, but not 
" with the honour that belongs to God." — The catechisms for 
tlie adult express the same doctrine, but in stronger terms. 
Doctor Challoner's "Summary of Christian Doctrine," pre- 
fixed to " The Garden of the Soul," the most popular Prayer 
Book of the English roman-catholics, lays down the same doc- 
trine ; and in " The Papist Misrepresented and Represented," 
published by the reverend Mr. Gother, our most eminent con- 
troversialist in the seventeenth century, and often republished 
by doctor Challoner, (the seventeenth edition of it is now be- 
fore me,) the following anathema is pronounced against the 
idolatrous worship of the saints : — " Cursed is he that believes 
" the saints in heaven to be his redeemers ; that prays to them 
" as such *, or that gives God's honour to them, or to any crea- 
" ture whatsoever. Amen." 

" Here, then, let me ask, whether, after perusing these pas- 



274 OATH AGAINST [Letter 

sages, (and a thousand like them might be produced to hirn,) 
any protestant of any description can honourably and consci- 
entiously, even in common conversation, charge idolatry on 
the doctrine of the catholic church, thus solemnly, explicitly, 
and authoritatively professed and explained by herself? 

" Some passages in a few catholic books of devotion, some 
practices of a few uninstructed catholics, in which the devo- 
tion to the saints has been carried to an improper length, and 
is therefore justly reprehensible, may be produced : I admit it. 
But these are as much condemned by the constituted autho- 
rities of the catholic church, as they-^can be by any protestants. 
Would not the divines of the protestant churches have just 
cause of complaint, if the reveries of Jacob Behmen, Sweden- 
borg, or Joanna Southcote, were charged upon their churches ? 
'' Look to our articles, to our homilies, to our books of com- 
" mon prayer," they would justly say. The catholics say the 
same : " Look to our councils, to our authorized catechisms 
" and prayer-books ; try us by those. — And, tried by these, can 
" you seriously say that our doctrine, respecting the invocation 
" of the saints, is idolatrous ? — can you even call it irration- 
t'al?" 

" 6. Several of the most eminent protestant divines have ac- 
quitted this doctrine of the catholics from the charge of idola- 
try. Doctor Luther acquitted them of it : archbisJiop Shel- 
don^ bishops Blandford^ Gunning^ Montague^ and many other 
of the brightest lights of the established church, have acquitted 
them of it. — Bishop Montague^ in particular, owns, that " the 
" blessed in heaven do recommend to God, in their prayers, 
" their kindred, friends, and acquaintance on earth." "This," 
saith the learned prelate, " is the common voice with the gene- 
" ral concurrence, without contradiction, of reverend and learn- 
" ed antiquity, for aught I ever could read or understand ; and 



XVIIL] INVOCATION OF SAINTS. 275 

" I see no cause or reason to dissent from them touching inter- 
" cession in this kind."* 

" The faculty of the lutheran university of Helmstadt ac- 
quitted them of it. On the marriage of the princess Christina 
of Wolfenbuttle, a lutheran, with the archduke of Austria, her 
court consulted that faculty. "Whether a protestant princess, 
" destined to marry a catholic prince, could, without wounding 
" her conscience, embrace the roman-catholic religion ?" The 
faculty replied, that " it could not answer the proposed ques- 
" tion in a solid manner, without having previously decided, 
" whether the catholics were or were not engaged in errors 
" that were fundament alj or opposed to salvation ? Or, which 
" was the same thing, whether the state of the catholic church 
'' were such, that persons might practise in it the true worship 
" of God, and arrive at salvation ?" The question thus raised 
by them, the divines of Helmstadt discussed at length, and con- 
cluded in these terms : "After having thus shown, that the 
" foundation of religion subsists in the roman-catholic religion, 
" so that a person may be orthodox in it, live well in it, die 
" well in it, and obtain salvation in it, the decision of the pro- 
" posed question is easy ; We are of opinion, that the most se- 
" rene princess of Wolfenbutde may, in favour of her marriage, 
" embrace the catholic religion." This opinion is dated the 
^ 8th of April, 1687, and was printed in the same year at Co- 
logne. Now, if the doctrines of the transubstantiation and the 
mass, or the invocation of the saints, as they are used in the 
church of Rome, were idolatrous and superstitious, persons 
could not practise in that church the true worship of God, or 
arrive in it at salvation ; they could not be orthodox in it, or 
live well in it, or die well in it, or obtain salvation in it. But, 

* For this, and the other authorities referred to, see the I^ay already 
cited, c. 3. 



276 OATH AGAINST [Letter 

in direct opposition to this theological oath of the British legis- 
lature, the lutheran divines of Helmstadt, specially and solemn- 
ly consulted, declared that the doctrines of transubstantiation, 
the mass, and the invocation of the saints, as used in the church 
of Rome, are not idolatrous or superstitious; and assured an 
illustrious Brunswicker, that, in the church professing them, 
she might safely live and safely die. 

" I shall cite two more protestant authorities ; they apply 
equally to transubstantiation and the mass, and to the invoca- 
tion of saints. Leibniz^ (certainly one of the greatest literary 
characters whom the world has produced,) has, in his Systema 
Theologicum^ discussed, with admirable candour, all the con- 
troverted tenets of catholic faith, and pronounced the catholic 
doctrines, in question, not to be idolatrous. 

'' With one further authority only I shall trouble my read- 
ers.* 

" BoswelL What do you think of the idolatry of the mass ? 

" Johnson, Sir, there is no idolatry. They believe 
" God to be there, and adore him. 

" BoswelL The invocation of the saints ^ 

^ Johnson, They do not worship the saints ; they in- 
^ voke them; they only ask their prayers." 

" 7. One further question let me ask. Are not catholics 
married by protestant clergymen ? Are they not married in 
protestant churches ? Do not protestant bishops often marry 
them? Could this be done, if they were idolaters ? Do the 
peers, who, or whose sons or whose daughters have married 
catholics, suppose they have married idolaters } 

" Here we pause. — We repeat, that it is far from our wish 
to discuss, or even to assert in this place, the truth of the ca- 
tholic doctrines, on the points we have noticed. — ^But, 

*The Life of Dr. Johnson, by Mr. Boswell, toL 1, p. 661, 2d edit. 



XVIIL] TRANSUBSTANTIATION. 277 

" Be that doctrine true, or be it false, can any per- 
son, in his cool and deliberate judgment, say, that the legisla- 
ture of the United Kingdom can worthily or wisely require any 
of its subjects to assert, with the solemn asseveration of an 
oath, either the affirmative or negative belief of a doctrine, up- 
on which the highest authorities, even of their own church, 
have been, are, and probably till the latest time, will continue 
to be divided ? 

" Surely the sacredness of an oath, which never should be 
taken, if the truth of what is sworn to admits of reasonable 
doubt, — good sense, which is shocked by the language of the 
declaration, — the terms of amity which subsist between the 
United Kingdom and many catholic states, and which render 
the declaration an uncivil state paper, — the littleness in wound- 
ing unnecessarily the feelings of that proportion of the com- 
munity which is catholic, (/or a protestant is not more hurt at 
a Turk^s calling him a christian dog^ than a catholic is at a 
protestant^s calling him an idolater^) — the impolicy of keep- 
ing any thing in existence, which unnecessarily insults and 
irritates, — the acknowledged wisdom and expediency of every 
legislative or ministerial measure, which promotes a reciprocity 
of good-will and conciliation, — and, above all, the merits, — 
we confidently say it, the merits of the catholics, — seem 
to point out the propriety of repealing this objectionable and 
inofficious declaration." 



24 



278 OATES'S PLOT, [Letter 

XVIIL 5. 

Oates^s Plot. 

You call, what you term the popish plot^ an infamous af- 
fair : thus Hume, thus Fox, thus every other person of honour 
and talent, describes it ; then, why are the oaths to which it 
gave rise, and under which so many roman-catholics actually 
suffer, still kept in force ? 

I beg leave to transcribe Mr. Fox's observations upon it. — 
" Although, therefore," these are that great man's words, "up- 
" on a review of this truly shocking transaction, we may be 
^' fairly justified in adopting the milder alternative, and in im- 
" puting to the greater part of those concerned in it, rather an 
'^ extraordinary degree of blind credulity, than the deliberate 
" wickedness of planning and assisting in the perpetration of 
" legal murder ; yet the proceedings on the popish plot must al- 
" ways be considered as an indelible disgrace upon the Eng- 
" lish nation, in which king, parliament, judges, juries, wit- 
" nesses, prosecutors, have all their respective, though certain- 
" ly not equal, shares. Witnesses, of such a character as not 
" to deserve credit in the most trifling cause, upon the most 
" immaterial facts, gave evidence so incredible, or, — to speak 
" more properly, — so impossible to be true, that it ought not to 
'' have been believed if it had come from the mouth of Cato ; 
" and upon such evidence, from such witnesses, were innocent 
" men condemned to death and executed. Prosecutors, whe- 
" ther attornies and solicitors-general, or managers of im- 
^^ peachment, acted with the fury which, in such circumstan- 
'' ces, might be expected ; juries partook, naturally enough, of 
" the national ferment ; and judges, whose duty it was to guard 



XVIIL] OATES'S PLOT. 279 

" them against such impressions, were scandalously active in 
" confirming them in their prejudices, and inflaming their pas- 
" sions.^' — "Lord Chief justice Scroggs," doctor Milner justly 
observes, " took in with the side, and ranted for the plot; 
'^ hewing down popery, as Scanderberg did the Turks. The 
" attorney-general used to say on the trials for murder, ' if the 
" man be a papist, then he is guilty, because it is the interest 
" of papists to murder us all.' "* 

1 am aware, that the number of the sufferers for Oates's plot 
falls very short of the number of those whom you term the 
Marian martyrs : but permit me to ask you, which, in your 
cool deliberate judgment, was the worst spirit, — that which 
consigned the victims of Gates's subornations to the gibbet, or 
that which consigned the Marian martyrs to the flames ? Sure- 
ly, if we should be called upon to strike a balance between 
Mary's persecutions and the legal murders for Oates's plot, we 
must confess that the latter is by far the greater disgrace to the 
English nation-l 

* North's Examen, p. 130; Doctor Milner's Seventh Letter to Doc- 
tor Sturges, p. 304, 7th edit. 

t In 1680, while the memory of this transaction was still recent, an ar- 
gumentative and eloquent vindication of the sufferers was published, un- 
der the title of " The Papists' Plea." It was afterwards printed among 
lord Somers's tracts. — A still more powerful defence of the catholics is, 
the " Apologie pour les Catholiques, centre les Faussetes et les Calom- 
" nies d'un Livre, intitule, * La Politique du Cler§e de France, fait pre- 
" miSrement en France, et puis traduit en Flamand ;— a Lieg-e, 1681, 2 
" vols. 8vo.'' The celebrated Arnaud was the author of the work : it has 
seldom been equalled, either in powerful reasoning or splendid eloquence. 
But the fullest and best account of the plot is to be found in, " An histo- 
" rical Narrative of the horrid Plot and Conspiracy of Titus Gates, call- 
" ed the Popish Pfot, in its various branches and progress, selected from 
" the most authentic protestant historians ; in which are added, some 
" cursory Observations on the Test Act, by Mr. William Eusebius An- 
"drews, 1818, 1 vol, 8vo." 



280 OATES'S PLOT. [Letter 

I must add, that you must not estimate the sufferings of the 
roman-catholics for Oates's plot, by the number of those who 
perished for it on the scaffold. All the laws against them were, 
from the time of the first mention of the plot, till the end of 
the reign of Charles IL executed upon them with the most hor- 
rid severity. Individuals are still living, whose fathers have 
told them what their fathers used to relate of the wretchedness 
and misery of the general body, whilst the delusion lasted. 
Even at that distance of time, few could speak of it without 
evident agitation and horror : they appeared to shrink even 
from the recollection of it. 

For their supposed part in the plot, ten laymen and seven 
priests, (one of whom was severity, and another eighty years 
old,) were executed. Eight other priests were hanged and 
embowelled in the reign of Charles IL for the mere exercise 
of their functions, without any reference to the plot. 

With the reign of Charles II. the sanguinary part of the pe- 
nal code^ against the roman-catholics, finally closed. 

The whole number of those who have suffered death in Eng- 
land for their religion, since the Reformation is as follows :— 

In the reign of Henry VIII. - - - 59 

" ^ of Queen Elizabeth - - 204 

" " of King James L - - - 25 
^' " of Charles Land during the rebellion 23 
^' " of Charles IL ... 8 



319 



I am confident that this number is not exaggerated ; every 
research which I have made respecting the sufferings of the 
English roman-catholics, until the accession of his late majesty, 
has convinced me that the e^^tent of them is not known. 



XVIIL] BILL OF RIGHTS. 281 

These are unpleasing topics. May " the Book of the Church^' 
be the last work which renders the mention of them necessary. 
" May," — permit me to exclaim with Fenelon, — "the kingdom 
" of trutji, where there is no error, no scandal, no division, — 
" where God will communicate to it universal peace, — soon 
" arrive !" 



XVIIL 6. 

JAME^ THE SECOND. 

Bill of Rights — Acts of Settlement. 

In the " Historical Memoirs of the English, Irish and Scot- 
" tish Catholics," 1 have expressed my sentiments upon the 
conduct of James II.: — my opinion that, in theory, his project 
for effecting a geneml religious toleration, was entitled to praise ; 
but that, as the public mind was not disposed to receive it fa- 
vourably, it was unwise ; and that the means which he adopt- 
ed for carrying it into execution were unconstitutional. I shall 
now only add, that none disapproved of his measures more than 
the catholics : " All judicious persons of the catholic commu- 
" nion," says Hume, " were disgusted with them, and foresaw 
" their consequences. Lord Arundell, lord Powis, and lord 
" Bellasyse, remonstrated against them, and suggested more 
" moderate councils. When lord T^TConnel disclosed James's 
" plan for catholicizing Ireland, lord Bellasysle declared, ' his 
" majesty was a fool and a madman enough to ruin ten king- 
" doms.' " 

To the Bill of Rights^ and the Acts of Settlement^ no por- 
tion of his majesty's subjects more constitutionally submits, 
than the roman-catholics : they only suggest, that no construe- 
24* 



282 ACTS OF SETTLEMENT. [Letter 

tion of the Bill of Rights, and no inferences from it, should be 
adopted to their prejudice, unless they are warranted by a fair 
construction of the words of the acts. They protest against 
any interpretation of them that amounts to legislation. They 
are sensible that the legislature has a right to interpret its acts, 
and that it is the duty of subjects to submit to its interpretation; 
but they conceive that this legislative right of interpretation is 
always exceeded, when the interpretation of legislative acts is 
extended to cases or provisions not contemplated by the legis- 
lature that framed them. The only case in the contemplation 
of the legislators of the Bill of Rights and the Acts of Settle- 
ment, was the succession of a roman-catholic to the crown : 
the only means to prevent it, in their contemplation, was the 
infliction of an actual disability of succession upon all roman- 
catholics and their heirs. It evidently follows, that the grant 
to the roman-catholics of any boon, short of a removal of this 
disability, does not reach the Bill of Rights, or the Acts of Set- 
tlement, and that it is incongruous to urge them against it. 

On this important subject, I beg leave to refer you to Mr. 
Canning and Mr. Plunkett's unanswered and unanswerable 
printed speeches. Can it give you pleasure to think, on the 
religion and merits of the roman-catholics, differently from these 
great men ? or from Mr. Pitt, Mr. Fox, and Mr. Burke, who, 
agreeing in nothing else, agreed in defending the roman-catho- 
lics, in panegyrizing their conduct, and strenuously advocating 
their emancipation? Would any of these eminent men have 
approved of "the Book of the Church," or the spirit which ap- 
pears to have dictated it ? 



XVIII.] ROMAN-CATHOLICS, &c. 28S 



XVIII. 7. 

CONCLUSION. 

Doctor Souiheyh repeated Charge of Superstition and 
Idolatry against the Roman-catholics, 

These words are the burthen of " the Book of the Church." 
In the page of it which is now before me, they occur for the 
last time. To the ear of a roman-catholic, when they are ap- 
plied to his religion, they are the most offensive words in lan- 
guage. 

1. You have seen in a preceding page, that the divines of 
tlie university of Helmstadt declared, on a solemn occasionj 
and*in a very solemn manner, that " the foundation of religion 
" subsists in the roman-catholic church ; so that a person may 
" be orthodox in it, live well in it, die well in it, and obtain sal- 
" vation in it." — Where, then, in^the opinions of the divines of 
Helmstadt, are its '' superstition and idolatry." 

2. You know what advances to a reconciliation were made 
by Bossuet^ and Leibniz^ and Molanus^ the lutheran abbot of 
Lockhum,^ " The abbot," says Bossuet, " has actually con- 
" ciliated the points so essential of justification and the eucha- 
" rist; nothing is wanting to him on that side, but that he 
" should be avowed. Why should we not hope to conclude 
" in the same manner disputes less difficulty and of less impor- 
" tance /" Surely then, therefore, Leibniz and Molanus saw, 
in the church of Rome, no " superstition or idolatry." 

* CEavres Posthumes de Bossuet, vol. 1, nouvelle edition ; desCEuvres 
de Bossuet, vol. 12 ; Leibnizii Opera Stud. Lud. Dutens, vol. 1, c. 5; and 
the Pensees de Leibniz, 2 vols. 8vo. 



284 ROMAN-CATHOLICS NOT [Letter 

3. You know that Leibniz was one of the most learned men 
and most profound philosophers whom the world has produc- 
ed : — ^read his " Sy sterna Theologicum?'* He discusses in it, 
article by article, the whole creed of the roman-catholic church. 

He discovers in none of its tenets "superstition or 

"• idolatry.'^ 

4. You know in what terms of respect other protestants have 
spoken of the church of Rome. To some of these I have re- 
ferred in the preceding article. Permit me now to refer you 
to Mdancthon^s letter to cardinal Campegio, published by 
Beausobre in his valuable History of the Reformation ; it shows 
how nearly, at one time, matters were thought to be accommo- 
dated between the catholic church and the lutherans : — Permit 
me also to refer you to the Memoir which accompanied the 
Confession of Augsburg^ when it was presented to Charles V. 
in which it was requested, — " 1st. That the pope would have 
" the goodness to concede to the protestants communion under 
" both kinds, particularly as the protestants did not blame those 
" who communicated in one kind ' only ; and confessed that 
" the body of Jesus Christ entire, together with his blood, was 
" received under the sole species of bread : — 2dly. That his ho- 
" liness would allow the marriage of priests :- — 3dly. That he 
" would allow, or at least tolerate, the marriages already con- 
" tracted by priests, or other religious persons, and dispense 
" with their vows. As to their mass," says the writer of the 
Memoir, " we retain its principal ceremonies." The distinc- 
tion of meats and other observances, Melancthon treats as se- 
condary points, to be easily settled. 

Beausobre considers the authenticity of the Letter and Me- 
moir to be unquestionable. " Nor are we," says Beausobre, 
" to hold Melancthon alone responsible for this relaxation, as 
^' it appears that the protestant princes declared to the media- 



XVIIL] SUPERSTITIOUS AND IDOLATROUS. 285 

" tors, that, if they would permit communion under both kinds, 
" the marriage of priests, and the celebration of mass, accord- 
" ing to their reformation of it, and this only till the decision 
" of the council should be obtained upon these points, they 
" were willing to obey in the rest." Beausobre also brings 
strong reasons to show, that these propositions were not sug- 
gested without the knowledge of Luther. Thus Melancthon, 
and the theologians who co-operated with him,* saw, in the 
roman-catholic church, no " superstition or idolatry." 

6. Cardinal Pallavicini mentions, on the authority of a letter 
of the cardinal legate Campegio, that " the parties were on the 
" foot of coming to an agreement, when some injudicious pub- 
" lications, which he mentions, rekindled the discord." 

" Probably those injudicious publications talked of " pope- 
" ry," and its " superstition and idolatry." 

Greatly indeed is it to be lamented, that, where such a gen- 
eral disposition of conciliation appeared, and such near ap- 
proaches to it were actually made, any thing should have pre- 
vented its completion ! 

With the reign of James II. you close your work, the task 
which I have imposed upon myself is therefore finished. 

♦Lib.3, C.5. 



With many thanks to you for the pleasure I have derived 
from many of your former publications, 

I have the honour to be, 

With the greatest respect, 

Your most obedient servant, 

CHARLES BUTLER, 

Lincoln VInn, 
4th November, 1824. 



( 287 ) 



APPEWDIX. 



Note I. 



Opinions of Foreign Universities on the temporal Power of 
the Pope^ referred to in page 108, 

In pursuance of Mr. Pitt's suggestions, three questions were 
sent to the universities of the Sorbonne, Louvaine, Douay, Al- 
cala and Salamanca. They were expressed in the following 
terms, and received the following answers : 

" 1 . Has the pope or cardinals, or any body of men, or any 
" individual of the church of Rome, any civil authority, pow- 
" er, jurisdiction, or pre-eminence whatsoever, within the 
" realm of England ? 

" 2. Can the pope or cardinals, or any body of men, or any 
''individual of the church of Rome, absolve or dispense with 
" his majesty's subjects, from their oath of allegiance, upon 
" any pretext whatsoever ? 

"3. Is there any principle in the tenets of the catholic faith, 
" by which catholics are justified in not keeping faith with 
" heretics, or other persons differing from them in religious 
" opinions, in any transaction, either of a public or a private 
'' nature ? 

The universities answered unanimously : 

" 1 . That the pope or cardinals, or any body of men, or any 
'' individual of the church of Rome, has not, nor have any ci- 
'' vil authority, power, jurisdiction, or pre-eminence whatso- 
*' ever, within the realm of England. 



288 APPENDIX. [Note I. 

" 2. That the pope or cardinals, or any body of men, or 
'^ any individual of the church of Rome, cannot absolve or dis- 
'' pense with his majesty's subjects, from their oath of alle- 
" giance, upon any pretext whatsoever. 

" 3. That there is no principle in the tenets of the catholic 
" faith, by which catholics are justified in not keeping faith 
" with heretics, or other persons differing from them in reli- 
" gious opinions, in any transactions, either of a public or a 
" private nature." 

The opinions of the universities of the Sorbonne, Louvaine, 
and Douay were first received, and were transmitted to Mr. 
Pitt with the following letter. 

" Sir, 

'' The committee of the English catholics have the honour 
" to lay before you, the opinions of the universities of Sor- 
" bonne, Louvaine and Douay, which have been transmitted 
" to us in consequence of your desire. 

" You will, we hope, see, from these opinions, that the sen- 
" timents of the most famous foreign bodies perfectly coincide 
" with those which we had the honour of stating to you last 
" year, as our firm and sincere tenets. 

" At the same time, we beg leave to call to your remem- 
" brance, that our opinions were fully stated to you previously 
" to the obtaining those of the foreign universities ; and that 
" they were consulted, not as the rule by which we form our 
" ideas of the duties of good subjects, but as a collateral proof 
" to you, that our sentiments are consonant to those of the 
" most enlightened and famous bodies of catholic divines on 
" the Continent upon these subjects. 

" We have the honour to be," &c. 

As soon as the other opinions were received, the committee 
transmitted them also to Mr. Pitt. 

A translation of all these answers is inserted in the Appen- 
dix to the first volume of Mr. Butler's " Historical Memoirs of 
" the English, Irish, and Scottish Catholics." 



APPENDIX. ^89 



Note II. 

The Oath taken by the English Roman-catholics^ under the 
Provisions of the Act passed for their Relief in the Year 
1791. 

I, A, B,j do hereby declare, that I do profess the roman- 
'^ catholic religion. 

" I, A. JB., do sincerely promise and swear, that I will be 
" faithful, and bear true allegiance to his majesty king George 
'^ the third, and him will defend, to the utmost of my power, 
" against all conspiracies and attempts whatever that shall be 
" made against his person, crown or dignity ; and I will do 
" my utmost endeavour to disclose and make known to his 
" majesty, his heirs and successors, all treasons and traitorous 
'' conspiracies which may be formed against him or them ; 
" And I do faithfully promise to maintain, support and defend, 
'' to the utmost of my power, the succession of the crown ; 
" which succession, by an act, intituled, ' An Act for the fur- 
" ther Limitation of the Crown, and better securing the Rights 
" and Liberties of the Subject,' is and stands limited to the 
" princess Sophia, electress and duchess dowager of Hanover, 
'^ and the heirs of her body, being protestants ; hereby utterly 
'^ renouncing and abjuring any obedience or allegiance unto 
'^ any other person claiming or pretending a right to the crown 
" of these realms : And I do swear, that 1 do reject and de- 
'^ test, as an unchristian and impious position, that it is lawful 
" to murder or destroy any person or persons whatsoever, for 
" or under pretence of their being heretics or infidels ; and al- 
" so, that unchristian and impious principle, that faith is not 
" to be kept with heretics or infidels : And I further declare, 
'' that it is not an article of my faith, and that I do renounce, 
" reject, and abjure the opinion, that princes, excommunicated 
" by the pope and council, or any authority of the see of 
" Rome, or by any authority whatsoever, may be deposed or 
'^ murdered by their subjects, or any person whatsoever : And 
'' I do promise, that I will not hold, maintain or abet any such 
" opinion, or any other opinions contrary to what is express- 
25 



290 APPENDIX. [Note II. 

" ed in this declaration : And I do declare, that I do not be- 
" lieve that the pope of Rome, or any other foreign prince, pre- 
^' late, state or potentate hath, or ought to have, any temporal 
" or civil jurisdiction, power, superiority, or pre-eminence, di- 
" rectly or indirectly, within this realm : And I do solemnly, 
^ in the presence of God, profess, testify and declare, that I do 
'' make this declaration, and every part thereof, in the plain 
" and ordinary sense of the words of this oath, without any 
" evasion, equivocation, or mental reservation whatever ; and 
" without any dispensation already granted by the pope, or 
^' any authority of the see of Rome, or any person whatever; 
" and without thinking that 1 am, or can be, acquitted before 
" God or man, or absolved of this declaration, or any part 
" thereof, although the pope, or any other person or authority 
" whatsoever, shall dispense with or annul the same, or de- 
" declare it was null and void.'' 

A similar oath was prescribed to the Irish roman-catholics, 
by the act passed for their relief in the 33d year of his late ma- 
jesty. No roman-catholic objects to either oath. 



FINIS 



CONTENTS. 



Introduction ------ page 5 

I. — The proper Style of Controversy - - 6* 

II.— The Creed of Pope Pius IV. - - - 8 

III. — Observations on such of the Articles in it as are 

expressed in general terms - - - 1 1 

IV.— Application of these Observations to doctor Sou- 
they's Charge against the Roman-catholic 
Churchj that her Doctrines suce corrupt - IS 

LETTER. I. 

v9 Geographical View of the Roman-catholic Clvurch - 17 

LETTER IL 

First Introduction of Christianity - - - .21 

LETTER III. 

Conversion of the Anglo-Saxons hy St. Augustine - 23 

1.— History of it 24 

2. — The perfect conformity of the Religion preach- 
ed by the Anglo-Saxon Missionaries to that 
now taught by the Roman-catholic Church 27 
3. — ^The Doctrine taught in Monasteries — Great 
Misrepresentation of it by two eminent pro- 
testant Writers - - - - 7 ^^ 
4. — ^Miracles performed by the Anglo-Saxon Mis- 
sionaries - - - - - -35 



292 ' CONTENTS. 

LETTER IV. 

Causes which pro^noted the Success of Christianity among 

the Anglo-Saxons ^ - - page 4& 

1. — The conduct of the Missionaries its chief 

cause ---..-.. 46 

2. — Unfounded charge brought by doctor Southey 

against the Anglo-Saxon Clergy - - 47 

3. — Alleged purer faith of the Welch - - 48 

LETTER V. 
Religion of the Dances — Their Conversion - - 50 

LETTER VL 

Saint Dunstan - - - - - - -52 

1. — Early Years of Saint Dunstan - - - 53 
2. — ^The Conduct of Saint Dunstan towards King 

Edwin - w ,. « « r 54 
S. — ^The Conduct of Saint Dunstan towards Kmg 

Edgar ------ 56 

4. — Saint Dunstan's Regulations for the Celibacy 

of the Clergy - - - - - 57 
5.— Saint Dunstan's Substitution of the Benedictine 

Monks to the Secular Canons - - 59 

6.— The Miracles of Saint Dunstan - - 61 

LETTER VIL 

1 . Charges against the Monks of withholding Knowledge^ 

and of a Disposition to immoderate Severity - - 65 
2. — Investitures — Saint Anselm - - - - 6S 

LETTER VIII. 

Immunities of the Church — Saint Thomas a Becket - 72 

LETTER IX. 

1. Cession hy King John of the Sovereignty of England 
to Pope Innocent III, - - - - - -81 

2. — Temporal Power of the Pope - - - - 83 



CONTENTS. 293 



LETTER X. 

View of the Roman-catholic System - - page 88 

1 . — Devotion to the Virgin Mary — the Saints — ^res- 
pect to the Cross, and to the relics of the 
Saints - - - - - - 89 

2. — Purgatory, and Prayers for the Dead - - 92 
3. — Auricular Confession — Indulgences - - 93 
4. — ^Saint Augustine and Pelagius - - - 99 
5. — ^Transubstantiation - - - - 102 

6— 1. The Authority of the Pope - - - 103 
2. Universal Doctrine of the Roman-catholics 

respecting the Supremacy of the Pope 105 
S. Transalpine and Cisalpine Doctrines on the 

temporal and spiritual Power of the Pope 106 
4. Remarks on Doctor Southey's Crimination 
of the Roman-catholic Church, in conse- 
quence of the alleged intemperate Ex- 
pressions of some of her Writers on the 
Pope's authority - - - - 109 

5. Defence by a Roman-catholic Divine of the 
Roman-catholic Church, against Charges 
brought against her by the present Bish- 
op of Winchester - - - - 1 1 6 

LETTER XL 

Rise of the Reformation - -- - -120 

1. — Rise of the Reformation — Persecution under 

the House of Lancaster - - - - 1 2 1 
2. — The Mendicant and other religious Orders of 

the Roman-catholic Church - - 127 

LETTER XII. 

Henry VIIL 142 

1 . — Has England gained by the reformation in tem- 
poral Happiness ? - - - -143 

2. — Has England gained by the Reformation in 

Spiritual Wisdom .^ - - • - 144 
25* 



294 CONTENTS. 

Henry VIIL — continued. 

3. — ^Was the Reformation attended by a general 

improvement in Morals ? - page 146 

4. — ^Was the Revival of Letters owing to the Re- 
formation, or materially forwarded by it ? 151 

5. — ^Was the Dissolution of Monasteries justified 

by the Conduct of the religious Orders ? 156 

6. — ^Was the Church of Rome negligent in reme- 
dying Ecclesiastical Abuses - - 159 

7.— Is Doctor Southey's Abuse of former and pre- 
sent Catholic Historical Writers merited 
by them? - - - - - 161 

LETTER XIII. 

Edward VL - - - - - - - 168 

LETTER XIV. 

Queen Mary - - - - - - -173 

1. — Persecution of the Protestants in the Reign of 

Queen Mary - - - - - i5. 

2. — Archbishop Cranmer and Bishop Latimer 182 

3 . — -Character of Queen Mary's Reign - - 186 

LETTER XV. 

Queen Elizaheth - - - - - - -188 

2. — The Establishment of the Protestant Religion 
in the Reign of Queen Elizabeth — Ob- 
servation on some Statements respecting 
it in " The Book of the Church" - 189 

2.— Summary of the Laws passed iu the Reign of 

Queen Elizabeth against Roman-catholics 195 

3. — Executions of the Roman-catholics under the 

sanguinary Code of Queen Elizabeth 201 

4.^ — ^Justification of the Persecutions, on the ground 
of the traitorous Principles of the For- 
eign Seminarists, and the general Dis- 
loyalty of the Roman-catholics - 214 

5. — Justification of the Persecutions, on the ground 
of the persecuting Principles and Prac- 
tices of their Church - - - 217 



CONTENTS. 295 

6,— .Justification of the Persecutions, from the al- 
leged Plots against Queen Elizabethr page 221 
7.— The Spanish Armada ... 222 

LETTER XVL 

James /. - - - 229 

1. — ^The Gunpowder Plot - - - " ib, 
2. — ^The Oath of Allegiance required by James I. 

from the English Roman-catholics - 234 

LETTER XVIL 

Charles I. - - 239 

1. — ^Artifices then used to inflame the Public Mind 
against the Roman-catholics — ^their Loyalty 
and Sufferings . - - - ib. 

2. — Solemn Judgment of Archbishops and Bish- 
ops of Ireland against the Toleration of the 
Roman-catholic Religion - - 2 c "^ 

LETTER XVIIL 

Charles IL 256 

1. — Doctor Southey's Defence of Charles IL's Violation 
of his Promise, at Breda, to the Roman-ca- 
tholics and Protestant Dissenters - 257 
2,— -Doctor Southey's various Criminations of the Ro- 
man-catholics in his present Chapter - 262 
3. — ^The Corporation and Test Acts - - 264 
4.— The Act of the 30th of Charles IL which ex- 
cludes Roman-catholics from sitting and 
voting in Parliament - - - 265 

5.— Oates's Plot 278 

6. — James the Second — Bill of Rights — Acts of 

Settlement - - - - - 280 

7. — Conclusion — Dr. Southey's repeated Charge 
of Superstition and Idolatry against the Ro- 
man-catholics - - - - 283 

APPENDIX. 

NOTE I. — Opinions of Foreign Universities on 

the temporal Power of the Pope - 287 

NOTE IL— The Oath taken by the English Ro- 
man-catholics, under the Provisions of the 
Act passed for their Relief, in the Year 1791 289 



( 296 ) 



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PHILOSOPHICAL CATECHISM, 

OR, 

Jl Collection of Observations^ 

Which establish the truth of the Christian Religion and de- 
fend it against the attacks of its enemies. — Written in French 
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( 297 ) 

LIFE 

OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOUR 
JESUS CHRIST, 

BY ST. BONAVENTURE5 BISHOP OF ALBANO. 



In an age when infidelity and atheism stalk abroad with 
the most barefaced arrogance, not only ridiculing the funda- 
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cies of our Blessed Saviour Jesus Christ, and the very being 
of God ; it is reasonably presumed that no publication will be 
more acceptable to Christians who are duly impressed with the 
end of their creation, and the importance of their baptismal eu^ 
gagements, than a series of pious meditations on the life of our 
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prelate, equally celebrated for his ardent piety and profound 
learning, above five hundred years since ; when, having no re- 
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meditating on those admirable examples, which it is our great 
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This treatise will not only be found useful as a book of spi- 
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the nativity of our Lord. The subsequent part relating to the 
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other chapters may be used at different times, according to the 
subject, which the Church proposes to our meditation. 

In the present edition, the first yet issued in America, care 
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( 5J98 ) 

LIVES OF THE SAINTS 

OF THE ORIENTAL DESERTS. 



The LivEs of the Saints of the Deserts have been 
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ing part of ancient church history. ***^** ** 

That an attentive persual of them may prove as beneficial 
to our countrymen as to other nations, is our principal 
motive in presenting this abstract to the American reader ; to 
whom it may also serve as an Essay on a part of History 
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to those who came to consult them. Although many of the 
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they w^ere authorized to follow by an extraordinary inspiration, 
are out of the common road of the other servants of God, and 
therefore more to be admired than imitated, we may never- 
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ordinary christian duties. 

By way of Appendix we have added a collection of re- 
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ancient hermits, from the most authentic records of the ages 
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( 299 ) 



THE UNITED STATES' 

CATHOLIC ALMANAC; 

OR LAITY'S DIRECTORY FOR 1SS4. 

Embellished with a Portrait of his Holiness Pope Pius VII.— Published 
by James Myres, at the Cathedral, Baltimore. 



The following recommendations have appeared, among others 

of a like nature, in favor of the Laity's Directory. 

From the Truth Teller.— Dec 14, 1833. 

" Useful Work. — We are indebted to the publisher, Mr. 
James Myres, of Baltimore, for a copy of " The United 
States Catholic Almanac, oy^ Laity'^s Directory.^ for the 
year 1834," an uncommonly useful and interesting work, and 
one which should be purchased by every Roman Catholic in 
these States. It contains many useful items of information 
which are frequently sought after by our readers in vain — des- 
criptions of St. Mary's and Emmetsburgh Colleges, and aU 
others of their kind in the Union, Holy Days, &c. &c. 

The present publication contains a spirited engraving of 
Pope Pius the VII. in his captivity, which is worth what is 
charged for the whole work. The Almanac is sold at twenty- 
five cents, and is decidedly one of the cheapest publications we 
have ever seen." 

From the Catholi^-Tetegraphj (Ciiin.) Jan, 3, 1834.^ 

" U. S. Catholic Mmanac. — ^The publisher Mr. James My* 
res, Baltimore, has sent us the Second Volume of this publica- 
tion, "The Laity's Directory for 1834." It is embellished 
with a beautiful engraving of Pope Pius VH. in his captivity, 
which is itself richly worth the price paid for the work. It 
contains, besides much other interesting matter, an alphabetical 
list of nearly all the catholic clergy of the United States." 
From the United States^ Catholic Miscellany. — Dec. 2S., 1833, 

"Catholic Almanac — ^We have received a copy of the 
above work, published by James Myres, Baltimore. It being 
highly instructive and interesting, we recommend it to the 
Catholic community." 



( 800 ) 

NOTICE* 

The PuhlisJier returns his sincere thanks to the Right 
Reverend Prelates, Clergy and Laity, of the Catholic Church 
of the United States, for the very liberal patronage he has 
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to merit a continuance of their support, as it is his intention to 
put his works at as low a rate as they can be printed for, al- 
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suing none but sucli as are works of merit; — ^he also hopes 
the time is not far distant when every Diocess in the United 
States will publish for itself such works as may be found use- 
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any prejudice that may exist among our dissenting brethren 
against our holy religion. 

Also — He returns thanks to his friends in Baltimore, and 
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ment he has received for the Second Edition of the United 
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opportunity of soliciting from all parts of the Union, such infor- 
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take place among the Clergy — Deaths of the Rev. Clergy, Sis- 
ters of Charity, or members of other Convents — ^and all other 
infonnation which may be considered of general importance 
to the Catholic Church; — as it is the intention of the pub- 
lisher to spare neither pains nor expense in rendering the 
work useful to his Catholic brethren. It will be ready for de- 
livery about the first of November, in each year. 

f:f*All communications directed to James Myres, Pub- 
lisher, at the Cathedral, Baltimore, flid. will be carefully at- 
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